Wolves/Nuggets Notes: Edwards, Conley, Murray, Gordon, Malone

In a series dominated by the visitors, the Timberwolves now find themselves looking for answers as they head to Denver for a pivotal Game 5 on Tuesday.

Wolves guard Anthony Edwards poured in 44 points in Game 4 but it wasn’t enough to prevent from the Nuggets from tying the series. Edwards is unfazed by the prospect of having to beat the defending champions twice more after losing the last two games at home.

“I said it after Game 2, they’re not going to lay down,” Edwards said, per Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. “They’re going to punch and we’re going to punch back. They beat us up (Sunday). The last two nights, they beat us up in the fight. That’s OK. we’re going to be all right.”

We have more on the Western Conference series:

• Mike Conley also looks at the way Minnesota handled the Nuggets in Denver during the first two games of the series as a reason for optimism, Jerry Zgoda of the Minneapolis Star Tribune relays. “I don’t think anybody thought this series would be over by now,” the Timberwolves point guard said. “We’re confident in our ability to win in Denver. We’ve done it before. We just have to remind ourselves it’s not going to be easy by any means.”
• The only name on the injury report for either team for Game 5 is Nuggets guard Jamal Murray. He’s listed as questionable with a left calf strain, Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports tweets. Murray, who has been consistently listed as questionable due to that injury but has yet to miss a playoff game, had 19 points and eight assists in 39 minutes on Sunday.
• Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon was a game-changer in Game 4 on both ends of the floor, Tony Jones of The Athletic notes. Not only did he post 27 points, seven rebounds and six assists, he stifled Karl-Anthony Towns, who shot 5-for-18 from the field. “He was our best player,” Nikola Jokic said.
• Nuggets coach Michael Malone wants the Denver fans on Tuesday to provide the necessary boost that’s been lacking for the home teams in the series, Jones adds in the same story. “We came up here (in Minnesota) to get two, and to take home court back,” Malone said. “And now that we were able to do that, we have to go back to Denver and protect our home court. We have already lost two games there, so we can’t afford to lose a third. That’s a message to our fans to come on Tuesday night and make that place an absolute zoo. This was a good win for us, but we can’t celebrate because we have a long way to go.”