By TIM BOOTH, Associated Press Writer
February 26, 2005
SEATTLE (AP) -- Vladimir Radmanovic joked before Friday's game that he was
ready to cut off his sore right wrist.
He might want to hold off on that plan.
Radmanovic had 13 of his 17 points after halftime to go with Ray Allen's
game-high 32, and the Seattle SuperSonics rallied from a 14-point second-half
deficit to beat Minnesota 98-88 Friday night.
Allen scored 24 in the second half and Radmanovic found his stroke, making
three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter for Seattle.
``Hopefully it'll be the old, same wrist soon,'' said Radmanovic, who
injured the wrist Feb. 13 against Dallas.
After trailing 65-54 late in the third quarter, Seattle outscored the
Timberwolves 48-23 over the final 14 minutes of the game to extend its lead
over the Timberwolves in the Northwest Division to 12 1/2 games.
``That was a good effort by the guys in white,'' Seattle coach Nate McMillan
said. ``They kept working, they kept with the game plan and we finally broke in
the fourth quarter and were finally able to knock down some shots.''
Kevin Garnett had 31 points and 14 rebounds for Minnesota, his highest point
total since scoring 27 in a 93-90 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Jan. 19.
But Seattle's defensive rotation on Garnett began to wear him down late in the
game. Garnett had just 4 points in the fourth quarter and took only four shots.
``We're undersized right now,'' Garnett said. ``I'm doing whatever I can to
give us an advantage.''
Seattle won its third straight following the All-Star break and snapped a
two-game home losing streak. It was Minnesota's second loss in as many nights
after the Wolves fell to the Los Angeles Clippers on Thursday.
Minnesota led by as many as 14 in the third quarter, but Seattle outscored
the Timberwolves 18-9 over a 5-minute stretch of the third and fourth quarters
to cut the lead to 74-72 with 9:16 left.
Fred Hoiberg made a 3-pointer for Minnesota, but Seattle scored the next
eight points, capped by a 3-pointer from Allen for a 80-77 lead with 6:40 left.
It was Seattle's first lead of the game.
Two straight baskets from Garnett -- his only points of the quarter -- tied
the score at 83. Allen and Radmanovic scored the next nine points for a 92-83
SuperSonics lead with 2:52 left, and Minnesota got no closer than six.
``We knew they were going to make a run at us,'' Minnesota coach Kevin
McHale said. ``The last 14 minutes of the game they just went at us. We just
did not respond at all.''
Rashard Lewis added 16 for Seattle and Vitaly Potapenko had 10 off the
bench.
Wally Szczerbiak scored 14 off the bench for Minnesota, which turned the
ball over 19 times, compared to just seven for Seattle.
``You just can't have 19 turnovers on the road,'' Garnett said. ``You can't
win any game like that.''
Minnesota played without forward Eddie Griffin and center Michael
Olowokandi. Griffin was placed on the injured list Friday after breaking his
left index finger against the Clippers. Olowokandi missed the game with the
flu.
Minnesota led 44-35 at halftime behind 17 points and nine rebounds from
Garnett. Seattle shot just 26 percent in the first half and settled for many
long jump shots late in the shot clock.
A 10-4 run midway through the second quarter gave Minnesota a 9-point
cushion. Potapenko had 8 points in the second quarter to keep Seattle close.
``We played in the second half the way we're supposed to play,'' Allen
said. Notes : Mark Madsen took Griffin's place on the roster. Madsen had been out
since breaking his left thumb Jan. 7 against Philadelphia. ... Olowokandi
hyperextended his right knee in the fourth quarter Thursday night and had an
MRI Friday. Results were not available. ... WNBA All-Star Lauren Jackson was in
attendance Friday night, signing copies of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit
issue she appears in. Jackson re-signed this week with the Seattle Storm.
Updated on Saturday, Feb 26, 2005 2:00 am EST
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