Schools Minister Rejects 'smear'

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope exited Game 5 of the Nuggets’ first-round playoff series with a sprained left ankle, according to the team. He is questionable to return. The injury appeared to occur as he left his feet for a layup attempt in the first quarter Monday night at Ball Arena. Caldwell-Pope checked out of the game with 4:41 remaining in the frame and was immediately examined by athletic trainers next to Denver’s bench.

Because it’s Julian Edelman, naturally, there’s a catch. John Matocha hasn’t played receiver before. Like, anywhere. “Never,” the venerated ex-Mines quarterback and NCAA all-time leader in total touchdowns told me Monday. “When I heard the comparisons of me to Edelman, I was a little surprised, because I’ve never played receiver. I definitely see myself as a quarterback. “But if an NFL team says I should, I will never say no.” Look, if the Broncos ask him to cover punts, he’s game.

Leading Colorado Democrats and the state’s oil and gas industry announced a preemptive armistice Monday — one that seeks to defuse the latest round of dueling ballot initiatives and legislation aimed at the industry and its environmental impacts. The proposals, described to reporters by Gov. Jared Polis and legislative leadership, include imposing a new per-barrel production fee on the industry and enacting new environmental standards.

Nuggets coach Michael Malone attributed Jamal Murray’s left calf strain to a specific moment during Game 4 between the Nuggets and Lakers, but he also indicated Monday that Murray might have already been dealing with an injury. “I think it was one movement that kind of worsened the calf,” Malone said before Game 5 of the first-round series at Ball Arena. With about eight minutes remaining in the fourth quarter Saturday night in Los Angeles, Murray appeared to reach for his calf after attempting a jump shot.

Dozens of tents remained standing on the grassy Tivoli Quad at the Auraria Higher Education Campus in downtown Denver on Monday as a student-led protest against the war in Gaza entered its fifth day. The encampment has more than doubled in size since it was set up Thursday, despite police removing tents and arresting 44 people Friday and a mix of rain and show over the weekend. More than 100 people gathered at the encampment Monday afternoon to hear from protesters arrested by Denver and Auraria campus police Friday. Demonstrators spoke, played music and read poetry for nearly two hours as organizers passed out water, snacks and sunscreen among the crowd.

The Mesa County Sheriff’s Office has launched an internal investigation into an incident at Central High School earlier this week after videos circulating on social media showed two deputies putting a student in a headlock, tossing him onto a sidewalk and threatening to tase him. “The Mesa County Sheriff’s Office is aware of the incident that transpired and the videos currently in circulation on social media,” the Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.