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 They did it a second time, coming back from 11 points behind in
the first quarter to beat the Milwaukee Bucks 112-101 at Target
Center.
"Hopefully we don't have to do it a third time," Wolves shooting
guard Kevin Martin said, "because it doesn't work out a lot in your
favor in the NBA."
The Wolves (32-31) recovered and overcame an opponent that arrived
at Target Center with the NBA's worst record. Milwaukee (13-51) also
was ranked 29th in the league in scoring and field-goal percentage.
All the Bucks did was open the game by making their first 12 shots
from the field. They put up 61 first-half points and led by six
points at halftime against a Wolves team that couldn't afford a
third loss in a four-game homestand that ended Tuesday if they are
to have any chance of keeping their distant playoff hopes alive.
"I guess they were due," Martin said. "We realized that wasn't us in
the first half."
So just who was that team?
"I don't know," Martin said. "I think that was a summer-league
team."'
Martin and forward Kevin Love led a third-quarter resurgence during
which the Wolves made five 3-pointers — Martin and Love with two
each — and outscored the Bucks 31-23 in the quarter to turn the
game.
The Wolves then used a 19-4 run that started the fourth quarter to
build a 105-88 lead with five minutes left, and the Bucks never
seriously challenged again.
The only other time this season the Wolves have recovered from a
deficit of 10 or more points to win was a December home game against
Philadelphia, when they trailed the 76ers by 19 points and still
won.
Love delivered 27 points and 10 rebounds Tuesday. Martin provided 26
points, and point guard Ricky Rubio had 11 points and 10 assists,
his 10th double-double this season. Guard J.J. Barea also scored 19
points off the bench for the Wolves, who kept pace with Memphis.
Minnesota still trails the eighth-place Grizzlies by five games for
the final Western Conference playoff spot.
Until the fourth quarter, the Bucks seemed serious about winning
consecutive games for the first time this season. They beat the
Orlando Magic at home on Monday.
On Tuesday, Milwaukee played without injured big men Ersan Ilyasova
and Larry Sanders and chose not to play O.J. Mayo basically for his
third consecutive game. The Bucks were done in by 15 turnovers that
the Wolves turned into 30 points.
"We did some good things," Bucks coach Larry Drew said. "To win on
the road, you have to be better. You have to take care of the
basketball, (shot) selection has to be good. You just can't turn the
ball over. I thought for three quarters we played well. I thought we
did some really good things."
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Included were the 12 consecutive made shots to start the game. By
the time forward Khris Middleton became the first Buck to miss a
shot, Milwaukee already led by as much as nine points.
"That doesn't happen very often," Bucks rookie point guard Nate
Wolters said of the 12-for-12 shooting start.
The Wolves made it a game by halftime after Barea scored 12
second-quarter points. He had 17 points by halftime just one day
after he talked about needing to break out of a slump.
He said Monday that his shot would return because it always does,
and then he went out and made six of seven first-half shots from the
field and seven of 10 for the game.
"I was due for something," Barea said.
Barea's play allowed the Wolves to get within 61-55 at halftime, at
which time Minnesota coach Rick Adelman delivered his team a simple,
direct message.
"He just said, 'Play better,'" Love said.
NOTES: Bucks rookie PG Nate Wolters turned off his cell phone
because he had so many tickets requests for Tuesday night's game
back home in Minnesota. He is from St. Cloud, about an hour's drive
north of Minneapolis. He would only quantify his fan club on Tuesday
as a lot of family members and friends who were headed to Target
Center to see him play there as a pro for the first time. Included
was his former high school coach, who was bringing a busload of
people. ... Bucks F Ersan Ilyasova did not play Tuesday because of
right ankle soreness. John Henson started in his place. F Larry
Sanders (fractured orbital bone) and G Carlos Delfino (foot surgery)
remain out as well for Milwaukee. ... Timberwolves injured backup C
Ronny Turiaf is set to get back on the court this week for some
conditioning work, his first activity since he sustained a knee bone
bruise in a Feb. 19 game against the Indiana Pacers. ...
Timberwolves veteran G A.J. Price was back in the locker room before
Tuesday night's game after he underwent an appendectomy Sunday at a
Minneapolis hospital and missed a game against the Toronto Raptors.
Price and Turiaf were the team's inactive players on Tuesday. ...
Timberwolves F Luc Mbah a Moute played host Tuesday to 12 teenage
basketball players from a French club team who flew to the United
States to see him play.
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