Nuggets come up an inch short in postseason quest

MINNEAPOLIS — The miraculous six-game winning streak that brought the Nuggets back from the dead to playoff contention and a winner-take-all game No. 82 against the Timberwolves is over.

So is Denver’s season.

The Nuggets fell 112-106 to the Timberwolves Wednesday night in Minnesota. Denver finishes one game out of the final playoff spot in the Western Conference for the second consecutive year.

In what was billed in Minnesota as the biggest game in more than a decade, the Nuggets didn’t cave to a raucous Target Center atmosphere that was buzzing with anticipation before tipoff. The Nuggets answered every Timberwolves’ run with a clutch basket of their own.

After Denver trailed by eight points with 4:26 in regulation, the Nuggets came back behind the play of Jamal Murray to tie the score at 99 with 2:51 to play. After the two teams traded baskets and the score remained deadlocked at 101, the Nuggets rebounded a Jimmy Butler miss with 4.4 seconds remaining, but Taj Gibson stole the ball from Nikola Jokic on Denver’s ensuing possession. With 1.6 seconds on the clock, Jamal Crawford’s prayer didn’t draw iron.

Jimmy Butler split a pair of free-throws with 40.3 seconds remaining in overtime to put the Timberwolves up 108-106 with 40.3 seconds remaining. Will Barton then missed a nine-foot runner, and Andrew Wiggins converted two free-throws to put Minnesota up four with 14.6 on the clock. The Timberwolves’ four-point lead was more than enough to secure the win and the eighth seed in the West.

As he has been for the past month, Nikola Jokic was spectacular. Jokic finished with 35 points, 10 rebounds and three assists. He shot 14-25 from the field, 4-7 from three and kept the Nuggets within striking distance all night. Jamal Murray and Will Barton had solid outings as well. Murray finished with 20 points, six rebounds and six assists. Barton chipped in 24 points on 9-22 shooting, eight rebounds and five assists.

Jimmy Butler, who didn’t play when these two teams faced each other last week, led the Timberwolves with 31 points. Karl-Anthony Towns added 26 points and 14 rebounds.