With 27 points, Anthony Edwards helped the Minnesota Timberwolves overcome the Denver Nuggets 115-70 on Thursday night, forcing a decisive Game 7 in this exciting postseason game. The Timberwolves had been struggling since the middle of the season.

In addition to pitching in 21 points and playing lockdown defense, Mike Conley scored 13 points after making his injury comeback. NBA MVP Nikola Jokic scored a meager 22 points thanks to a strong 38 rebounding effort by big men Rudy Gobert, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Naz Reid.

On Sunday night in Denver, there is a pivotal game that will determine a position in the Western Conference playoffs.

The Nuggets bench was outscored 36-9, while Jamal Murray struggled once more, scoring just 10 points on 4-of-18 shooting. Seven of those points came in the last five minutes of play. After the starters’ 20-0 run in the first quarter, the Wolves reserves went on a 24-0 run in the fourth quarter to take an incredible 49-point lead.

For the final thirty-one minutes of the game, the Nuggets were behind by at least seventeen points and Aaron Gordon led them with twelve points and eight rebounds. The Nuggets were only 7 for 36 from three-point range.

McDaniels’ offense is usually a benefit for the Wolves, but he can’t play as quietly as he did over the course of the first five games, scoring 35 points in total. This time, he was everywhere on the court. He made 3 of 5 shots from distance and mixed in some timed dunks to get the fans excited.

Edwards had that unwavering appearance of a superstar player unwilling to give up the series, even though his 44-point effort was eventually wasted in a Game 4 loss the previous time he played at Target Center. He scored nine points during the 20-0 run and only needed nine field goals to reach 19 points at the half.

He converted a steal into a fast break early in the third quarter, then used two crossover dribbles to get Michael Porter Jr. airborne and burst by him for a slam. After driving past Porter to draw a foul, he landed hard on his back a few minutes later. When Edwards returned to the court without missing a beat, the Wolves took a timeout to allow him additional space to collect his breath. This sparked the “MVP!” chanting.\

In anticipation of what was to come, Edwards held up seven fingers to the cheering fans as a fourth-quarter timeout indicated the beginning of empty-the-bench time.

While Conley was sidelined due to right calf muscle tightness during Game 5 in Denver, the Wolves were often disorganized offensively. Upon his return, the 17-year veteran point guard undoubtedly contributed to keeping the half-court sets neat and orderly.

In a Game 3 loss to Boston in the first round, the Wolves kept the Nuggets to 14 points in the first quarter, which was tied for the second-lowest total in the league this postseason behind Miami (12 points).

Murray struggled mightily to produce any kind of impact against McDaniels and the rest of the NBA-best defense, which had shown some noticeable weaknesses over the previous three games before coming together.

Murray, who shot 3-for-18 in the second game, attempted a variety of shots, including spot-up, fadeaways, and leaners. He even attempted an airball finger roll from the baseline, but Naz Reid backed him down in the post during a poor matchup on the next possession, allowing the Wolves to win 43–24.

In stark contrast to Murray’s 55-foot swish at the end of the second quarter in Game 3, which ended an 8-0 run over 20 crucial seconds, McDaniels tipped in a missed 3-pointer by Reid at the halftime buzzer to make it 59-40.