WALDRON GRAIN & FUEL

04/30 01:02 CDT Randle and the Timberwolves try to clinch series against Denver Randle and the Timberwolves try to clinch series against Denver By The Associated Press Denver Nuggets (54-28, third in the Western Conference) vs. Minnesota Timberwolves (49-33, sixth in the Western Conference) Minneapolis; Thursday, 9:30 p.m. EDT LINE: Nuggets -5.5; over/under is 224.5 WESTERN CONFERENCE FIRST ROUND: Timberwolves lead series 3-2 BOTTOM LINE: The Minnesota Timberwolves look to clinch the Western Conference first round over the Denver Nuggets in game six. The Nuggets defeated the Timberwolves 125-113 in the last meeting on Tuesday. Nikola Jokic led the Nuggets with 27 points, and Julius Randle led the Timberwolves with 27. The Timberwolves are 31-21 against conference opponents. Minnesota ranks fifth in the Western Conference in rebounding with 44.1 rebounds. Rudy Gobert leads the Timberwolves with 11.5 boards. The Nuggets have gone 36-16 against Western Conference opponents. Denver is seventh in the Western Conference with 44.0 rebounds per game led by Jokic averaging 12.9. The Timberwolves' 13.8 made 3-pointers per game this season are only 0.2 more made shots on average than the 13.6 per game the Nuggets give up. The Nuggets average 7.5 more points per game (122.1) than the Timberwolves give up to opponents (114.6). TOP PERFORMERS: Naz Reid is scoring 13.6 points per game and averaging 6.2 rebounds for the Timberwolves. Ayo Dosunmu is averaging 16.0 points and 2.3 rebounds over the last 10 games. Jokic is scoring 27.7 points per game and averaging 12.9 rebounds for the Nuggets. Jamal Murray is averaging 2.2 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games. LAST 10 GAMES: Timberwolves: 6-4, averaging 118.2 points, 41.6 rebounds, 26.2 assists, 7.7 steals and 5.2 blocks per game while shooting 49.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 116.3 points per game. Nuggets: 7-3, averaging 121.1 points, 44.5 rebounds, 28.3 assists, 7.5 steals and 4.5 blocks per game while shooting 47.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 117.2 points. INJURIES: Timberwolves: Anthony Edwards: out (knee), Donte DiVincenzo: out for season (leg). Nuggets: Peyton Watson: out (hamstring), Aaron Gordon: day to day (calf). ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.