|
 Love, who missed Saturday's game after the death of his
grandmother, added seven assists for the Timberwolves, who snapped a
two-game losing streak. Nikola Pekovic added 18 points and five
rebounds and Kevin Martin pitched in with 18 points to go with four
steals.
Brandon Jennings totaled 20 points and dished out seven assists to
lead the offense for the Pistons, who have dropped two in a row
following a four-game winning streak. Josh Smith finished with 17
points and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added 16 for Detroit, which shot
just 28.6 percent from 3-point range.
Love had 12 points in the first quarter to help stake Minnesota to a
33-32 lead. The Timberwolves' 64 points marked a season-high for a
Detroit opponent at the break, as Minnesota took a 13-point
advantage into the locker room led by 19 points and 11 rebounds from
Love.
[to top of second column] |
The Pistons got as close as 86-75 when Chauncey Billups
struck from 3-point range with 2:11 remaining in the third
before the Timberwolves used a 10-2 run, sparked by consecutive
3-pointers from Martin, to enter the final frame ahead 96-77.
Minnesota ensured there would be no fourth-quarter comeback with
Robbie Hummel coming off the bench to strike for the stanza's
first four points, and the lead never shrunk to less than 19 as
the visitors coasted toward the final buzzer.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Pistons SG Rodney Stuckey (knee) missed his
second straight game. ... Minnesota has scored 100 points or
more in six of its last eight games. ... Detroit C Andre
Drummond, who came into the game averaging 18.4 points and 16.8
rebounds in December, finished with a modest eight points and
eight boards.
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