HEAT Head Coach Pat Riley

On the game:
"Turnovers, rebounding, second shots... I think they had 10 second shots in the second half. We didn't get off to a good start. We got off to a real lethargic start, I thought. The game ended up the way it did. We cut it to six and never had a chance to get it down. I thought we maybe had a chance to get back into it, but they made two or three real good plays." "We didn't play hard enough tonight from the beginning. They came out and went quick. They put Telfair on the ball full court... We never reacted to their first quarter aggressiveness and quickness. Some nights that happens. Tonight was a night that we did not play with the same aggressiveness we have played with the last two games." "I was trying to find someone that would guard somebody. McCants was getting off on a couple of guys so I tried to go with Luke. Luke has actually been one of our better perimeter defenders. He hasn't been able to make shots, but I thought he kind of gave us a lift tonight."

HEAT Guard Chris Quinn

On the game:
"We didn't get off to a very good start, and trying to come back after that takes a lot of your energy. We tried to get back in the game but could never get close enough." "Missing a guy like Shaq hurts a lot, but we can't make excuses. We have to step it up and play better."

HEAT Guard Daequan Cook

On the game:
"We got down early and could never recover... I hit my open shots and did what I could on the floor. That helped me have a good night tonight. It would have been a lot better if we had won tonight. I can have great nights, but if we don't win it doesn't mean much." "We miss the big man in the middle. We miss him a lot because he is a key to the team. To play without him puts a lot of pressure on us, and tonight we couldn't deliver."

Timberwolves Head Coach Randy Wittman

On the Game:

"Well, we got off the schneid, finally... This is one of the games we talked about yesterday, going through a pretty grueling practice that we went through yesterday, that this was going to be attrition of wills tonight. They're coming in here with seven straight losses and we're coming in with eight, kind of going through the same struggles as each other."

"I thought our start to the game was really a positive for us. That's the first time in I don't know how many games we had all five guys, the starters, in double figures. We had 19 assists at half -- we didn't have that the last two games combined -- and we end up with 29. I thought a big key was our defense forcing them into 18 turnovers and then the points we scored off their turnovers."

Timberwolves Guard Rashad McCants

On the game:
"It's a big weight off our shoulders, having lost that many in a row and being able to come together like this. I think 2008 will be a big change for us. I think last year was an adjustment stage -- trying to get adjusted to the new style, the new coach, the new players and our whole chemistry. I think now we're starting to get the gist of what kind of basketball we want to play. We're going to play a lot of pick-and-roll basketball and get a lot of side-to-side movement. When Al, Marko and Sebastian all hit shots and everyone plays defense, we'll win a lot of these games."

"It's going to take the same kind of effort to win back-to-back games. We played well tonight. We executed, played defense and capitalized. I think if we do the same things, but at a higher rate, we'll be able to get two or three wins in a row."

Timberwolves Forward Al Jefferson

On the game:
"Most definitely this was a must-win game for us. That Sunday game was embarrassing. This team had lost eight in a row and we had to take advantage of Shaq being out, Alonzo out. So we just had to come out and take advantage of it."

On yesterday's practice:
"Practice yesterday was big time. It was tough, it was long, everybody was into it, and we just took it from practice and brought it to the game."

On limiting Dwyane Wade:
"We knew that the ball was going to be in D-Wade's hands, so we had to get on him and help. It just worked out for us. We got some big-time rebounds and it all worked out."

On tonight's lesson learned:
"Tonight showed that if we go out, play as a team, play together, go out and make a run, instead of putting our heads down, then we can come out with a victory. Tonight should take over and show us that we need to do it every night, not just some nights. We need to do it every night. So I think tonight will just motivate us and give us some more confidence."

Timberwolves Guard Sebastian Telfair

On the win:
"Yesterday's practice will be a big thing for us carrying this win over into the next game. We came out, we had a strong practice, everybody came to work, and I think it carried over to today. When we come out and have strong practices like that, it lifts everybody up and it helps."

On his role:
"I think the ball movement starts with me. It comes down to me getting guys in the right place, penetrating and getting guys open. Once a team's point guard gets going, then everyone follows."