Timberwolves-Celtics Preview

By NICOLINO DIBENEDETTO
Posted Dec 05 2012 1:25AM

Rajon Rondo is back, and he's looking to provide a spark for the Boston Celtics.

Facing the Minnesota Timberwolves is usually a good way for them to do that, but this time may be different.

Rondo will try to help the Celtics continue their dominance in this series Wednesday night while the Timberwolves attempt to build off their most lopsided victory of the season.

Boston (9-8) split two games without Rondo, who served a suspension for shoving Brooklyn's Kris Humphries into the stands in retaliation for a hard foul on Kevin Garnett during a 95-83 loss last Wednesday.

The Celtics seemed to be cruising to a second victory without the All-Star guard on Saturday, but they wasted a game-opening 17-0 run and fell 91-88 at Milwaukee.

Rondo, the NBA leader with 12.9 assists per game, is thrilled to be back and wants to help the Celtics, who have dropped four of seven and averaged 89.0 points over their last three.

"It was difficult," Rondo told the team's official website. "I love being around the guys. I love coming into practice and being around the team and playing, but I had to miss that for a couple of days.

"We've got to get this show on the road. We've got to have a great December. I mean, I want to get better. I want to run off about eight or nine games straight."

Trying to start a run like that against the Timberwolves (8-8) seems to be ideal since Boston has won 10 straight meetings while holding them to an average of 91.6 points and 42.1 percent shooting. The Celtics are averaging 106.8 points while winning six in a row at home dating to a loss on March 6, 2005.

Rondo is averaging 16.0 assists and 8.3 points while appearing in three of the last four overall matchups, accumulating 17 assists in a 100-79 romp at Minnesota on March 30.

The Timberwolves shot 34.7 percent from the field - 6 for 24 from beyond the arc - in that meeting, but they enter this one coming off their best shooting performance of the season.

Minnesota connected on 53.2 percent of its field goals and made 13 of 25 from long range to rout Philadelphia 105-88 on Tuesday, its third win in four games. The blowout allowed the Timberwolves to limit Kevin Love to a season-low 25 minutes while he managed six points and 10 rebounds.

Love is averaging 19.4 points and 14.6 rebounds in seven games since missing the first nine recovering from an illness and a broken right hand.

"Kevin Love is one of the best rebounders of our era," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. "I know that's saying something early on in his career, but he is."

Rivers has seen Love's dominance of the boards up close - he's averaged 14.0 with 13.8 points while appearing in four of the past six matchups.

He should also be familiar with Josh Howard, who is looking to build on his best performance since joining Minnesota last month. The veteran swingman, playing against Boston for the first time since the 2009-10 season, had 16 points and 10 rebounds against the 76ers after averaging 5.9 and 3.0, respectively, over his first seven games.

He averaged 8.7 points with Utah last season, but needed surgery on his troublesome left knee.

Garnett and Celtics beat T-Wolves again, 104-94

By KEN POWTAK
Posted Dec 05 2012 11:20PM

BOSTON (AP) Kevin Garnett sure looked as though he wanted to remind the Minnesota Timberwolves what they've been missing these last five years.

Garnett scored 18 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and remained unbeaten against his former team as the Boston Celtics beat the Timberwolves 104-94 on Wednesday night in Rajon Rondo's return from a two-game suspension.

The Celtics improved to 10-0 against Minnesota since they acquired Garnett from the Timberwolves during the summer of 2007. They also won for the 11th straight time against Minnesota.

Asked if Garnett still liked to play against his old team, Boston coach Doc Rivers didn't hesitate.

"What do you think?" he said.

When the reporter answered "yes," Rivers smiled and replied: "That's a good answer."

Celtics teammate Paul Pierce, who scored 18 points, downplayed all that, saying Garnett just likes to face good young players such as Timberwolves forward Kevin Love.

"I think he just accepts the challenges of playing against some of the top players in the game," Pierce said.

Minnesota is the only other team Garnett has played for in his 17-year career. Garnett looked motivated from start to finish, even coming out and swiping the ball out of Love's hands in front of Boston's bench early in the final quarter.

"We established the post, I thought, early on. I thought defensively we played with a lot of energy," Garnett said. "We made them go to their second and third options, which is something they don't like to do."

Love could see Garnett's energy sparked Boston's other players.

"He's intense," Love said. "He's K.G. He's a guy that defensively, he'll clamp down on you. He didn't leave me out there more than once tonight, really clamped in."

Boston went 1-1 without Rondo, suspended for his role in a scuffle during a game against the Brooklyn Nets last Wednesday.

Rondo had 17 points and 11 assists. Jason Terry scored 17 and Brandon Bass 12.

Love led the Timberwolves with 19 points and 13 rebounds. Nikola Pekovic had 14 with nine boards.

Minnesota went just 6 for 19 from 3-point range one night after hitting a season-high 13 3s in a win over Philadelphia. The Timberwolves also went 14 for 30 from the free throw line.

"We're not going to win if we miss 16 free throws or whatever it was. That's terrible," Minnesota guard Jose Barea said.

Boston, which led by seven entering the final quarter, scored 11 of the initial 14 points in the fourth and opened a 90-75 lead on Terry's 3 from the left wing with 7:50 to play. The Timberwolves went nearly 5 minutes without a basket.

The Celtics maintained between a 14 and 12-point lead over the next 3 minutes, keeping the Timberwolves from making a run by nailing a handful of free throws before a spinning, crowd-pleasing basket by Rondo made it 100-85 with 3 1/2 minutes left.

The Celtics used a 9-0 run over 2 minutes to open a 67-61 lead on Terry's 3-pointer midway into the third.

Minnesota, coming off a 17-point win in Philadelphia on Tuesday, scored the last five points of the half to grab a 51-47 edge at the break.

The Celtics opened the game 10 for 13, but cooled off late in the first quarter, missing six of their last nine shots and trailed 30-27 after one.

Love headed to the bench early when he picked up his second foul - both on offense - with 2:27 left in the first quarter.

NOTES: Minnesota held its opponents under 90 points in three of the previous four games - all wins. It's a commitment to defense that coach Rick Adelman saw at the beginning of the season. "We've had a great work ethic," he said. "The guys are working hard on it." The Timberwolves entered having allowed the fourth-fewest points in the NBA. ... Boston G Avery Bradley, sidelined since shoulder operations at the end of last season, said he expects to be able to practice in "one to two weeks." ... Rivers compared Love's ability to rebound to that of Hall of Famer Dennis Rodman. "I played with, I think, one of the greatest rebounders all-time - Dennis Rodman," he said. "I watched him at the (London) Olympics and said, `He seems to know where the ball is going when it's in the air."' Love then went out and grabbed an offensive rebound on Minnesota's first shot of the game. ... Rondo got a loud ovation when he was introduced in the starting lineups. ... Garnett played his 1,273rd game, one behind Minnesota assistant Terry Porter for 17th all-time.

Notebook: Celtics 104, Timberwolves 94

Brian Robb, for NBA.com
Posted Wed Dec 05, 2012 11:37 PM - Updated Wed Dec 05, 2012 11:37 PM

THE FACTS: Rajon Rondo and Kevin Garnett both finished with double-doubles, as the Boston Celtics pulled away in the second half for a 104-94 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves. Rondo (17 points, 11 assists) looked sharp in his return from a two-game suspension as he captained a balanced Celtics scoring attack that saw all five starters finishing in double figures. Garnett added 18 points and 10 rebounds in Boston's second straight home win. Kevin Love had a game-high 19 points and 13 rebounds for the visitors in the setback.

QUOTABLE: "You can feel it starting to come. It's not here, but it's coming and you feel that. We've just got to push through. It's going to be a great month for us."
-- Doc Rivers

THE STAT: The Celtics don't hit the offensive glass often, but they took advantage of all of their opportunities against the Wolves in the second half, scoring 10 second chance points on five offensive rebounds. The strong showing, combined with sharp shooting (55 percent) helped Boston post a 57-point second half in the come-from-behind-win.

TURNING POINT: Boston's play without Garnett on the floor has been a recurring issue for the Celtics all season, but Wednesday's win proved to be a strong step in the right direction for the team's second unit. With Garnett resting for the final seven minutes of the third quarter, the C's outscored Minnesota 20-11 without their defensive anchor, enabling Boston to build a double-digit lead and cruise to a comfortable win late.

QUOTABLE II: "[Garnett] pokes and prods and elbows and jabs. He does whatever he needs to do in order for his team to win, and that sums up Kevin Garnett to me."
-- Love

HOT: Garnett, 36, came out smoking hot against his former team, hitting six of his first seven shots of the game to help carry the Boston scoring load early against the Wolves. Garnett shot 8-of-13 for the game.

NOT: Josh Howard -- Filling in for Andrei Kirilenko in starting five, Howard could not solve Boston's defense after halftime, shooting just 1-of-5 from the field to finish with 12 points after scoring 10 in the first half.

FANTASY SPOTLIGHT: Jason Terry -- The shooting guard took advantage of his extended time on the floor, with Leandro Barbosa limited by the flu. The former Maverick piled up 17 points behind a trio of 3-pointers, along with a season-high five rebounds over 37 minutes.

ROOKIE WATCH: Jared Sullinger -- With Brandon Bass saddled with foul trouble early on, the power forward made his presence felt on both sides of the floor over his 16 minutes of action. The 20-year-old had seven points, six rebounds, two blocks, a steal and drew a charge against Love.

NOTABLE: Leandro Barbosa only played a minute, as he continues to battle flu-like symptoms. The Celtics have defeated the Timberwolves 11 straight times. Minnesota shot just 50 percent (13-of-26) from the free throw line. Avery Bradley told reporters before the game he is "a week or two" from returning to practice. The shooting guard has missed the first two months of the season while recovering from offseason shoulder surgery. Minnesota missed 16 free throws. Greg Stiemsma scored two points in his first game against his former team. Kirilenko sat out with back spasms.

UP NEXT: For Minnesota, Friday vs. Cleveland, Wednesday @ Denver, Friday @ New Orleans. For Boston, Friday @ Philadelphia Saturday vs. Philadelphia Wednesday vs. Dallas.

• Timberwolves: Budinger, Roy, Rubio
• Celtics: Melo

• Timberwolves: --
• Celtics: --

• Lead Changes: 9
• Times Tied: 9

• Arena: TD Garden, Boston, MA
• Officials: #38 Michael Smith, #61 Courtney Kirkland, #73 Tre Maddox
• Attendance: 18624
• Duration: 2:06