Clippers Caught in Hunt

Minnesota Coach Flip Saunders asked and he received.

After a winless trip in the thick of a hunt for a playoff berth, Saunders told his players they needed to win at least three of the last five games.

On Saturday night, the Timberwolves got their third in a row with a 103-93 victory over the Clippers as Kevin Garnett had 19 points and 14 rebounds.

“We said we had to take three to keep the pressure on the other teams,” Saunders said. “We took care of what we had to do.”

Garnett also had five assists and five blocked shots as Minnesota, with two games to play, moved half a game ahead of idle Sacramento for seventh place in the Western Conference.

“It’s definitely an exciting time of year,” Garnett said. “Now we’ve got to sit back and wait.”

Joe Smith had 18 points and Anthony Peeler added 14 and eight assists for the Timberwolves, who can clinch a playoff berth with one more win or a loss by ninth-place Seattle.

“This was a huge statement because two of the wins were against teams competing for playoff spots,” Smith said. “Now we feel we have to make a statement on the road because we’re not going to have home-court advantage.”

Minnesota, which has lost eight in a row away from home, doesn’t play again until Tuesday night at Houston, but the Timberwolves will be occupied--they have games to watch.

“I’m going to be a Lakers fan tomorrow,” Saunders said, referring to today’s Laker-Seattle game.

Lorenzen Wright scored 18 points and Maurice Taylor added 15 for the Clippers, who fell to 9-38. Rookie Michael Olowokandi, the No. 1 overall draft pick, was ejected in the third quarter after his second technical foul.

“They needed the win and it showed in their play,” Taylor said. “They forced us to respond and we didn’t.”