Timberwolves-Nets Preview

By KATE HEDLIN
Posted Feb 02 2012 6:10PM

After another disappointing effort at home, the Minnesota Timberwolves hope for a better outing on the road.

The Timberwolves will try to win three straight road games for the first time in more than two years when they face the New Jersey Nets on Friday night.

Minnesota failed in its fourth attempt to even its record on the season with a 109-99 loss to Indiana on Wednesday. The Timberwolves (10-12) shot 37.4 percent and gave up their second-highest point total of the season, including 64 in the second half.

"We just couldn't get stops," said Kevin Love, who had 21 points and 17 rebounds but shot 6 of 16. "Especially because we didn't shoot a good percentage from the line or from the floor."

Minnesota's last two chances to reach .500 have both come at home. It lost 106-101 to the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday after shooting 38.5 percent and falling behind by 18 points.

The Timberwolves will try to bounce back on the road, where they've looked more comfortable recently. They are 5-4 away from home and have won their last two road games, defeating Dallas and Houston while averaging 112.5 points. Love averaged 30.0 points in those wins and shot 61.3 percent.

Ricky Rubio has double-doubles in his last three road games, averaging 17.3 points and 11.3 assists.

Minnesota's improved play on the road is a big reason the team has managed to hover around .500 most of the season. On Friday, it will try to win three straight away from home for the first time since April 3-8, 2009. The Timberwolves went 10-72 on the road the previous two seasons.

New Jersey is coming off its third win in five games overall, 99-96 over Detroit on Wednesday.

Deron Williams scored 26 points, Kris Humphries added 18 and the Pistons missed a 3-pointer with 1.8 seconds left. The Nets (8-15) held on after Detroit came back from a 12-point deficit and tied the game at 88. Humphries made two free throws and Williams hit a 3-pointer to push the lead back to five.

"You can't take anyone lightly," Humphries said. "They made a push at the end. (It was) sloppy."

New Jersey used just eight players as it remains without centers Brook Lopez and Mehmet Okur as well as forward Damion James and guard Marshon Brooks. Newly signed Keith Bogans had two points and one rebound in 17 minutes.

"I told them they were the 'Great Eight' tonight," coach Avery Johnson said of his depleted roster. "That's the only way you could look at it."

While playing shorthanded, New Jersey has relied heavily on Williams, who has averaged 29.0 points in the last five games.

Williams tied a career high with 21 assists as New Jersey snapped a four-game losing streak to Minnesota in the last meeting, winning 107-105 at home April 5. Love sat out with a strained groin.

Wolves overcome Morrow's 42 to beat Nets 108-105

By BRIAN MAHONEY
Posted Feb 03 2012 11:30PM

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) The Minnesota Timberwolves almost never won away from home last season.

Now, they don't seem eager to go back there.

Luke Ridnour made the tiebreaking 3-pointer with 1:23 left, Nikola Pekovic scored a career-high 27 points, and the Timberwolves beat the New Jersey Nets 108-105 on Friday night to surpass last season's road victory total.

The Timberwolves overcame a career-high 42 points from Anthony Morrow, whose eight 3-pointers in 11 attempts were the most in the NBA this season.

Kevin Love added 20 points and 10 rebounds for Minnesota, which improved to 6-4 on the road and 11-12 overall. The Wolves, just 5-36 on the road last season, have won three in a row away from home.

So, how about more road games?

"I wish," Love said. "If it was that way we'd be over the doomed .500 mark that we can't seem to get over. I really don't even want to talk about it because it's kind of been our Achilles' heel."

Rookie Ricky Rubio finished with 10 points, 10 assists and six steals for the Wolves in his point guard matchup with Deron Williams. Williams had 12 points and 14 assists, but shot just 5 of 18 and had two costly turnovers in the final half-minute.

Rubio came up with a steal with 1:35 left, leading to Ridnour's 3-pointer that made it 102-99. The Wolves got the ball back after replays showed a ball went off Williams out of bounds with 29 seconds remaining, and Ridnour made two free throws for a five-point lead.

But Morrow, who missed the last game with a sprained left ankle, converted a four-point play to make it 104-103 with 22 seconds left. Jose Barea and Ridnour each made a pair from the line around Kris Humphries' dunk to keep the lead at three, and the Nets lost their final chance when Williams fumbled the ball trying to throw a pass, with Rubio eventually coming up with it and lofting it downcourt as time ran out.

"Anthony was open, too," Williams said. "It was an unfortunate turnover. Last two of the game are on me. I told the team it was my fault."

Minnesota is just 5-8 at home, where it plays Saturday against Houston. But the Wolves seem comfortable on the road. Rubio is quickly making fans around the league, particularly in large markets, and one fan held a Puerto Rico flag behind the basket when Barea made his first appearance Friday.

Coach Rick Adelman agreed that maybe the Wolves should play more on the road.

"It seems like that's where we win," he said. "But I think it just gives you a lot of experience and different guys really stepped up. Pek was terrific. Just really terrific. I thought Ricky was really good tonight."

Humphries had 16 points and nine rebounds.

Pekovic, in his second year from Montenegro, made 11 of 14 shots. He replaced an ineffective Darko Milicic to start the second half and dominated inside while also grabbing 11 rebounds. His layup erased the Nets' last lead and tied it a 99 with 1:55 left.

"Pekovic played unbelievable," Rubio said. "He's a tough guy. He's really tough I can tell you. He saved me a couple of times. I was all over with the ball and he was right there to finish the basket. He's a smart guy.

"He knows how to play. He did an unbelievable job. Maybe he was the key of the game today."

The Wolves led 23-19 after one, then used a 13-1 run early in the second to open a 36-22 lead on Michael Beasley's follow with 8:15 remaining in the half. Morrow then hit a 3-pointer and suddenly the Nets were rolling, tearing off a 23-5 spurt that gave them a 45-41 edge.

Morrow hit his fourth 3 of the period with 1:33 to go, and the Nets led 50-49 at the break.

"It's just me being in aggressive," Morrow said. "It's something that I'm continuing to build on."

The Wolves trailed by one early in the third before Wes Johnson slammed down Rubio's lob pass, then hit a 3-pointer for a 63-59 lead. Love hit two free throws, Rubio made a nifty move that had the crowd gasping to set up Johnson for a three-point play, and Pekovic hit two free throws to cap a 12-0 burst and make it 70-59 with 5:17 left in the period.

The Nets cut it to 80-75 after three.

Notes: Morrow's previous career best of 37 came on Nov. 15, 2008, for Golden State, when he set an NBA record for most points scored by an undrafted rookie. ... Nets C Brook Lopez, out all season with a broken right foot, said he has been jumping rope and running, and that he will soon work on his lateral movement. ... The Nets won't play in Brooklyn until next season, but they'll be in New York on Monday. The Nets will wear their jerseys from the New York Nets of the ABA for the first of five games as part of the NBA's Hardwood Classic nights. They played on Long Island from 1968-77, winning two titles. ... Morrow was wincing as he came down the floor after rebounding the miss of Minnesota's first shot, but didn't appear bothered again by the ankle injury. ... Milicic had missed three games with an illness before returning Wednesday against Indiana.

Notebook: Wolves 108, Nets 105

By Adam Figman, for NBA.com
Posted Friday February 3, 2012 11:26PM

THE FACTS: In the final moment of a tight back-and-forth tilt highlighted by career nights from Anthony Morrow (42 points, seven 3-pointers) and Nikola Pekovich (27 points, 11 rebounds), the Minnesota Timberwolves squeaked out a 108-105 victory over the New Jersey Nets. With one last chance to tie things up as the fourth quarter buzzer approached, Deron Williams fumbled away his squad's last possession and the Nets' chances of a victory with it.

QUOTABLE: "We were up and down. The last minutes we were up, which were the most important minutes."
-- Timberwolves point guard Ricky Rubio

THE STAT: A pair of noteworthy career-highs: Morrow's 42 and Pekovic's 27 points. With the Nets worn down by injuries and Minnesota big man Kevin Love (20 points off 5-for-16) playing and finishing beneath his statistical averages, these two unexpectedly carried their teams through the contest's tight third and fourth quarters, taking constant advantage of top-notch passes from point guards Williams and Rubio, respectively.

TURNING POINT: Six clutch Minnesota free throws -- four from Luke Ridnour, two from J.J. Barea -- kept the Nets at (a very, very short) arm's reach in the final 30 seconds. A couple of misses and New Jersey may have been able to jump ahead and steal the win.

HOT: With rookie shooting guard MarShon Brooks sidelined with a broken toe, Morrow returned from a one-game absence without missing a beat. He followed up his Jan. 31 28-point performance with an incredible effort, putting in 42 while shooting 13-for-20 and dropping eight 3-pointers. The swingman's timely four-point play in the closing minute gave the Nets one last glimpse of hope before they were handed their fate not long thereafter.

QUOTABLE II: "This win was definitely a character builder because they learn what they learn what they have to do down the stretch of games. The Nets have a lot of injuries but Morrow had it going and Deron Williams is a handful, Give our guys credit, they withstood it."
-- Timberwolves coach Rick Adelman

GOOD MOVE: Morrow was listed as "probable" coming into the night -- safe to say his decision to give a go (and his coach's decision to start him) were for the better.

BAD MOVE: Before tipoff, Johnson said the Nets would need to take extra good care of the ball, because Rubio's quick hands tend to cause deflections, leading to take-aways and turnovers. His guys did just the opposite, allowing the point guard to rack up 6 steals through his 37 minutes of play.

INSIDE THE ARENA: Red-and-yellow flags dotted the Prudential Center, a reminder that the Spanish fan favorite Rubio was in town.

NOTABLE: The Nets decided to bus into New York City and stay in a Manhattan hotel Friday night, electing to cross the river and settle in immediately instead of traveling to Madison Square Garden early Saturday afternoon.

UP NEXT: For the Nets, Saturday @ New York, Monday vs. Chicago, Wednesday vs. Detroit. For the Timberwolves, Saturday vs. Houston, Tuesday vs. Sacramento, Wednesday @ Memphis.

• Timberwolves: Lee, Randolph
• Nets: James, Lopez, Stevenson

• Timberwolves: --
• Nets: --

• Lead Changes: 11
• Times Tied: 8

• Arena: Prudential Center, Newark, NJ
• Officials: #24 Mike Callahan, #29 Mark Lindsay, #73 Tre Maddox
• Attendance: 15069
• Duration: 2:22