Mike Conley looked at Minnesota’s 20-point deficit early in the third quarter with one thought.
“Man, not again.”
Conley entered Sunday night 0-4 in Game 7s, but the visiting Timberwolves rescued their veteran guard from a fifth loss with a dominating second half, wiping out that 20-point hole to beat the Denver Nuggets 98-90 in Game 7 of a Western Conference semifinal series.
Karl-Anthony Towns had 23 points and 12 rebounds and Jaden McDaniels also scored 23 for Minnesota.
The Timberwolves are headed to the Western Conference finals for the first time in 20 years after winning in Denver for the third time in the series. Minnesota won Game 7 against the Sacramento Kings in a second-round playoff series in 2004 to reach the conference finals.
The Timberwolves, the No. 3 seed, face the fifth-seeded Dallas Mavericks in Game 1 on Wednesday night in Minneapolis.
“I don’t think they understand what they just did, getting to the Western Conference finals,” Conley, whose only other trip to the third round came with Memphis in 2013, said about his young teammates. “It’s a great opportunity; don’t take it for granted.”
Anthony Edwards was 6-for-24 shooting but finished with 16 points, eight rebounds and seven assists to end the Nuggets’ bid for a second straight NBA title. Rudy Gobert was big down the stretch, scoring eight of his 13 points in the fourth quarter, including a 12-foot turnaround jumper to beat the shot clock and put Minnesota ahead by four with 7:43 left.
“When Rudy hit the turnaround, I was like, ‘Yeah, we probably got it,’” Edwards said.
Nikola Jokic had 34 points, 19 rebounds and seven assists, and Jamal Murray scored 35 points for Denver. It is the second time in six seasons the Nuggets have lost a Game 7 at home.
“Season’s over, that’s what’s hard,” Denver coach Michael Malone said. “(Heck) being up 20; season’s over.”
The Nuggets struggled against a tough Timberwolves defense all series, but none more costly than the final 22 minutes when they scored just 32 points.
They are the fifth straight reigning champion to exit the playoffs before the conference finals.
“It’s hard because the teams are hungrier, better talented than last year probably,” Jokic said. “Everybody got better, everybody wants to beat us. That’s my thought process.”
Minnesota took its first lead since the first quarter on Gobert’s floater 12 seconds into the fourth, and it later found itself up 77-72 after two Gobert free throws with 8:23 to go. Jokic missed his first seven 3-pointers of the game but hit two shots from deep to keep the Nuggets close, pulling them within 81-78 with 6:46 remaining.
Naz Reid, who scored 11 points, hit two free throws, blocked Jokic’s fadeaway and had a putback dunk later in the fourth. Edwards drained a 3-pointer off a Murray turnover to put the Timberwolves ahead 92-82 with 3:07 left.
Denver closed within 93-88 with 1:02 left, but Towns’ dunk sealed Minnesota’s trip to the conference finals.
“I’ve been here nine years. I’ve talked about wanting to win and do something special here with this organization,” Towns said. “I’ve seen everything and seen it all and being here this year, with these guys, this team, after all that, it’s super special.”
The Nuggets staged a 16-0 run bridging the first and second quarters and led 53-38 at halftime. They pushed their advantage to 58-38 with 10:50 remaining in the third quarter, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope missed a 17-footer that would have made it a 22-point lead.
The Timberwolves came storming back, using a 19-3 run to get within 61-57 with 3:05 left in the period. Towns then hit a pair of free throws to get Minnesota within two, and Edwards drained a 3-pointer with 1.6 seconds to go to make it 67-66 Denver heading into the fourth.
“It showed us who we are,” Edwards said. “The coaches believed in us, even in the third when we were down 20. Once we really lock in on the defensive end, we’re a helluva team to beat.”