The Denver Nuggets found themselves completely outclassed Thursday night against the Minnesota Timberwolves after a 113-96 loss in game three of the first round of the playoffs to go down 1-2 in the series.

Minnesota outscored Denver by 14 to start the game and built on that lead at the half and even after the Nuggets stepped it up in the second half, the gap that had been built up was simply too much for them to overcome late in the game.

It was a dead night for the Nuggets offensively. As a team they shot 34% from the field and just 25% for three point range. The Nuggets were doing enough to create shots for themselves and attempted 32 total three pointers, but the shots were simply not falling.

"Everybody needs a day to understand that we did not play well offensively," Denver head coach David Adelman said (via Nuggets). "We didn't exert physicality offensively to help each other out and I think we got sped up by their pressure. That led to some unorganized possessions in the first half."

Nikola Jokic led the the game with 27 points and 15 rebounds, but there was such a severe lack of production across the board that any efforts Jokic made alone weren't going to cut it.

The Timberwolves have steadily increased their defensive pressure and effectiveness as the series has gone on and Jokic has felt the effects the most.

While he did lead the game in points, he wasn't nearly as effective as he could have been and his playmaking abilities have been severely stifled, which wasn't helped by the team's overall poor shooting night.

There's still time left in the series, but the Nuggets are reaching a point where they can't afford to let games slip away from them the way that Thursday's did. The Timberwolves clearly feel the momentum switch in the air and if the Nuggets aren't careful, the rest of the series could be out of reach.

The margin of error against a team like the Timberwolves is incredibly slim and especially as they've stepped up their own game, the Nuggets can't afford to have their offensive talent fail them. 

Adelman acknowledged after the game that he ran a smaller lineup on the court for most of the game to try and create more shooting, which not only didn't end up working out offensively, but it left the Nuggets open to physical dominance by the Timberwolves. 

Thursday needs to be a wakeup call for Denver and even if it true that some nights shots simply don't fall, the Nuggets have to seriously address their execution offensively if they want to stay competitive in the series.