Notebook: Timberwolves 111, Rockets 98

Posted Friday February 17, 2012 11:38PM

By Matt Miller, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: Like most teams who have faced the Minnesota Timberwolves this month, the Houston Rockets had no answer for the Wolves' mack truck from Montenegro and their All-Star power forward.

Nikola Pekovic and Kevin Love owned the paint, combining for 63 points on 24-for-36 (66.7 percent) shooting and 29 rebounds to lead Minnesota past the Rockets, 111-98, on Friday at Toyota Center. Pekovic scored a career-high 30 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, but it was Love (33 points and 17 boards) who came up with several crucial baskets down the stretch after Houston had cut a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit to one.

Rookie Chandler Parsons paced the Rockets' attack with 18 points, six rebounds and three assists, while Courtney Lee came off the bench to match his season high with 17 points on 6-for-11 shooting.

The Wolves (15-16) have bounced back from a season-worst four-game losing streak with back-to-back victories. They also have won their last three meetings with the Rockets (17-14) after dropping 15 of the previous 16.

QUOTABLE: "He's been carrying us on his back. ... [He makes my job] so much easier. He's consuming so many players and drawing so much attention from guys on the other team that it's allowing me one-on-one opportunities, and that's just allowing me to have a lot of success on the offensive end."
-- Love on how Pekovic makes life easier for him.

THE STAT: The Wolves controlled the area around the basket from the tip, outscoring Houston 64-44 in the paint and attempting 13 more free throws than the Rockets. Minnesota, which has poured in at least 50 points in the paint in three of its last four contests, has scored an average of 50.5 points in the paint over its last four games.

TURNING POINT: Houston entered the fourth quarter with a 91-77 deficit, but it ripped off a 15-2 run at the start of the period to climb within 93-92 with 7:16 remaining. That's when Love put his teammates on his shoulders and carried them to victory, scoring the next 10 points for Minnesota during a 10-2 spurt that put the game out of reach.

QUOTABLE II: "You have to credit [the Wolves] and Rick [Adelman] for calling a timeout and making an adjustment. He started to run plays for Love, and at some point, I was guarding him and Chandler was guarding him. ... We needed to make a couple of adjustments to match up with their adjustments."
-- Rockets' Lee on Love and Minnesota's game-saving run.

HOT: Pekovic posted his fourth consecutive double-double en route to recording his fifth 20-point performance this February. Pekovic, who finished Friday's game with a career-best 30 points on 13-for-20 shooting, 12 rebounds and three blocks, has averaged 22.0 points on 63.3 percent shooting (38-for-60), 12.3 boards and 2.0 blocks over his last four games.

NOT: The Wolves nailed their first two 3-point attempts but missed 10 of their next 13 to finish the game 5-for-15 (33.3 percent) from behind the arc. Including Friday's performance, Minnesota has shot just 27.9 percent (41-for-147) from 3-point range over its last eight games.

GOOD MOVE: Pekovic had his way with the Rockets in the first half, establishing position deep in the post to generate several layups. With no Rocket other than center Samuel Dalembert coming close to matching Pekovic's strength, Houston had no choice but to leave its sole rim protector in the game with two fouls. Not surprisingly, the Wolves continued to attack through Pekovic, who drew Dalembert's third foul, as well as a technical, before halftime.

QUOTABLE III: "[Minnesota] just rolled us down. They just beat us up. ... They rolled hard, got in the paint and we didn't have any answers for them."
-- Rockets head coach Kevin McHale.

BAD MOVE: The Wolves switched to a zone defense late in the third period after building a double-digit lead, but it allowed Houston to work the ball around the perimeter to open shooters. The Rockets were grateful for Minnesota's lack of ball pressure and defensive intensity as they buried three of their first four attempts from long distance in the fourth quarter.

NOTABLE: Rockets fans greeted Love, who was dealt a two-game suspension for stepping on forward Luis Scola's face, with a raucous chorus of boos during the pre-game player introductions. ... Minnesota played without reserve guard J.J. Barea, who flew back to Minneapolis to be with his girlfriend as she gives birth to the couple's first child. ... Wolves rookie sensation Ricky Rubio announced after Friday's shootaround that he will not participate in the NBA's Skills Challenge during All-Star weekend. ... Houston rookie Parsons was selected Friday to take part in the Shooting Stars competition. ... The Wolves outrebounded Houston 44-26 overall, which set the Rockets' season low in rebounding. ... Minnesota improved to 11-2 when it shoots as well or better than its opponent and 7-1 when it connects on at least 45 percent of its field-goal attempts. ... Houston fell to 0-8 when its opponent makes at least 50 percent of its shots. ... The Rockets are now 1-10 when trailing at halftime. ... Friday's win gave the Wolves their first victory over Houston in the season-series since 2004-05.

UP NEXT: For the Wolves, Sunday vs. Philadelphia, Monday @ Denver, Wednesday vs. Utah. For the Rockets, Sunday vs. Utah, Monday vs. Memphis, Wednesday vs. Philadelphia.