Butler's overtime heroics lift Timberwolves to 128-125 victory over Nuggets

All good things have to come to an end. Tonight, in chilly Minnesota, the Denver Nuggets fell 128-125 in overtime to the Minnesota Timberwolves ending a three-game win streak where Denver had held its opponent to 85 points or fewer in all three contests.

The Nuggets made things interesting in Minneapolis, though, coming back from 19-down to take their first lead since the game’s opening minute on a Trey Lyles free-throw with a little over seven minutes to go in the fourth quarter.

“Second night of a back-to-back. We could have very easily folded and just rolled over,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said on Altitude TV’s postgame broadcast. “I like the fact that our guys never did that.”

Minnesota looked like they were about to pull away again after an Andrew Wiggins four-point play with under three minutes to play gave the Timberwolves a nine-point lead. But Denver responded. Will Barton’s semi-transition three brought Denver back to within one with 51 seconds left.

After a difficult Jimmy Butler fallaway jumper and two Jamal Murray free-throws on the Nuggets’ next possession, Denver trapped Butler while trailing by one point and forced a jump-ball with 16.9 seconds remaining. Minnesota ultimately controlled the tap and Taj Gibson split a pair of free-throws which left the door open for a Nuggets’ miracle. Barton was then fouled on a drive to the rim and sent the game to overtime by converting on two free-throws with five seconds remaining. Butler’s desperation heave was off thanks to good pressure defense from Denver.

The two sides traded baskets and free-throws in the overtime period until Butler was fouled by Lyles with the Timberwolves leading by two, 127-125 with 16.9 seconds remaining. The All-Star hit just one of two but Lyles’ three-point try at the buzzer clanged off the iron.

For Denver, Barton scored a team-high 28 points off the bench. Lyles finished with 23 points on 8-13 shooting in 31 minutes — also off the Nuggets’ bench. Murray tallied 21 points in 46 minutes while Nikola Jokic scored finished with 22 points, nine rebounds and four assists.

Butler led Minnesota with 39 points. He scored 12 of Minnesota’s 14 points in the extra period.

“That’s an All-Star. He showed his worth right there and he did it too us in the earlier game too,” Lyles said of Butler. “When a guy gets going like that it’s hard to stop him. Kudos to him. We kind of threw everything at him and he was able to take it and still finish.”

Denver found itself in a 19-point first-half hole after Minnesota tallied 71 first-half points on 59 percent shooting just 24 hours after the Nuggets held the Utah Jazz to just 34 points across the game’s first two quarters. At the 6:29 mark of the second quarter, the Timberwolves led 53-34.

But after Karl-Anthony Towns was subbed out of the game at the 4:04 mark of the third quarter with Minnesota leading 86-68, the Nuggets rallied. Denver pieced together an impressive 22-6 run behind Barton and Lyles and the duo at one point combined for 19 of Denver’s 22 points during that stretch.

The Nuggets then took the lead at 96-95 for the first time since the game’s opening few posessions on a Lyles free-throw with just over seven minutes to go in the fourth quarter.

Denver battled back from 19-points down on the road on a back-to-back. They didn’t quit. Butler and his scoring prowess down the stretch was just too much for the Nuggets to overcome.

The Nuggets (19-16) host the Philadelphia 76ers (15-18) on Saturday at Pepsi Center. Denver falls to 1-2 in overtime games this season.