MINNEAPOLIS : Ayo Dosunmu scored a career-high 43 points off the bench as the short-handed Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the Denver Nuggets 112-96 on Saturday to take a 3-1 lead in their Western Conference first-round playoff series.
The win came at a cost for Minnesota, who lost star guard Anthony Edwards to a left knee injury in the second quarter, while Donte DiVincenzo exited earlier with a right leg injury that early reports suggested could be a ruptured Achilles tendon.
Naz Reid added 17 points, while Julius Randle had 15 points and nine rebounds. Rudy Gobert contributed 15 rebounds.
For Denver, Jamal Murray scored 30 points, while Nikola Jokic recorded 24 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists.
In Phoenix, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander delivered a playoff career-high 42 points to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 121-109 win over the Phoenix Suns and a 3-0 series lead.
Dillon Brooks led the Suns with 33 points, while Devin Booker was limited to 16.
The New York Knicks levelled their Eastern Conference series at 2-2 with a 114-98 win over the Atlanta Hawks, powered by Karl-Anthony Towns’ first playoff triple-double (20 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists).
Finally, Paolo Banchero and Desmond Bane scored 25 points each as the Orlando Magic beat the Detroit Pistons 113-105 to take control of their first-round series.
