It's going to be an uphill battle for the Denver Nuggets.
The Nuggets lost, 106-80, in Game 2 of the second-round series to the Minnesota Timberwolves. This was the fewest points they've scored in any game this season. Minnesota has held Denver to under 100 points in both games en route to taking a commanding 2-0 lead. This is just the second time all year that Denver has lost two home games in a row, regular season and postseason included.
"My hope is that, yeah, we're down 2-0. Not ideal. But it's a long series—first one to four," said head coach Michael Malone. "Can we find a way to believe in each other? Believe in ourselves? And win Game 3? That's all that matters."
Aaron Gordon paced the team with 20 points on 8-of-14 shooting. He made 3-of-5 three-pointers.
Justin Holiday had an excellent showing off the bench with 13 points on 4-of-5 makes from distance.
Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Edwards each scored 27 points for Minnesota.
Gordon was a man on a mission in the first quarter and scored 13 of Denver's 20 points. However, things started to get ugly in the second quarter when the Timberwolves outscored the Nuggets, 33-15. In that period, the Mile High squad made just 6-of-24 shots and turned the ball over 5 times. Minnesota entered the halftime break with a 61-35 lead.
Things got worse in the second half. The Timberwolves grew their lead to 30 points in the third quarter. Denver went on a run in the fourth quarter and got the deficit down to 19 points when Reggie Jackson made a three-pointer, but that was the closest they got.