Timberwolves Run Streak to Six in a Row

The Minnesota Timberwolves are playing so well, even giving up 18 consecutive points can’t slow them down.

Terrell Brandon had 22 points and 11 assists Saturday as the Timberwolves overcame a big run by the Portland Trail Blazers to win, 93-80, at Minneapolis. It was their sixth consecutive victory.

“We played for 48 minutes and stuck to our game plan,” Minnesota’s Kevin Garnett said. “We forced them to miss some shots. We beat probably the best team in the NBA.”

Brandon, who has made more than 60% of his shots during the winning streak, made eight consecutive shots at one point and 10 of 14 overall.

Reserve LaPhonso Ellis added 16 points on eight-of-11 shooting and had nine rebounds.

Minnesota led, 47-39, at halftime and looked to break the game open by scoring the first 10 points of the third quarter to go up by 18 points with 9:17 to play. But Bonzi Wells, who led Portland with 21 points, scored seven consecutive points to key an 18-0 run that tied the score with 5:15 left.

Brandon took over in the fourth quarter. He made three consecutive jumpers to give Minnesota an 80-70 lead with 8:38 to play.

Greg Anthony answered with consecutive three-point baskets to pull the Trail Blazers to within four points, but the Timberwolves got big plays from two reserves--a three-point play by Reggie Slater and a three-point basket by Todd Day--to go up, 86-78.

Garnett added 19 points for Minnesota, and his defense harassed the Trail Blazers’ Rasheed Wallace into a four-of-20-shooting, 10-point performance. The Timberwolves held Portland scoreless over the game’s final 4:11.

“We made some good runs but used up a lot of energy,” Trail Blazer Coach Mike Dunleavy said. “Minnesota is a tough place to play at the end of a road trip.”

Houston 110, Charlotte 97--Cuttino Mobley scored 23 points and helped the Rockets hold off a late rally by the Hornets at Charlotte, N.C.

Charlotte scored 14 consecutive points to pull within 93-85 with 5:36 to play. But that’s the closest the Hornets would get, as the Rockets, who had five players score in double figures, used sharp shooting to hang on for the victory.

Maurice Taylor and Walt Williams each scored 18 points for the Rockets, and Kenny Thomas added 10.

David Wesley led the Hornets with 25 points.

San Antonio 99, Utah 86--Tim Duncan is on a roll, and this time the Jazz was in his way.

Duncan had 33 points and 10 rebounds while Derek Anderson scored 22 points and Terry Porter added a season-high 17 to lead the Spurs at Salt Lake City.

It was a matchup of the teams sitting atop the Midwest Division, but the Spurs showed they’re simply the better team, winning their fourth in a row over the Jazz dating to last season.

Karl Malone led the Jazz with 19 points.

Denver 102, Dallas 100--Antonio McDyess, who punched a ball deep into the stands in frustration five minutes earlier, scored on a rebound as time expired to lift the Nuggets at Denver.

McDyess scored 11 points and had 19 rebounds, and Kevin Willis scored 18 for the Nuggets, who won their ninth consecutive home game and ended a six-game losing streak against the Mavericks.

Michael Finley led Dallas with 32 points, Steve Nash had 23, and Dirk Nowitzki added 21 points and 14 rebounds.

Washington 89, Phoenix 82--Chris Whitney scored six of his 13 points in the final 27 seconds at Washington to lead the Wizards to their fourth consecutive victory, their longest winning streak since April 1998.

Juwan Howard led Washington with 21 points and seven rebounds.

Richard Hamilton added 12 points and Jahidi White 11 as the Wizards played with their full roster sound for the first time since early December.

Cliff Robinson led Phoenix with 22 points, and Rodney Rogers added 19 points and six rebounds.

Jason Kidd, charged last week with domestic violence assault after an altercation with his wife, returned to the Suns’ starting lineup and had 18 points, 12 assists and seven rebounds.

Detroit 108, Milwaukee 103--Jerry Stackhouse scored 32 points and was involved in a shoving match with Lindsey Hunter at Milwaukee as the Pistons ended the Bucks’ eight-game winning streak.

Stackhouse clashed with Hunter at the 1:53 mark of the third quarter in a shoving match that led to four technical fouls.

Joe Smith scored 14 points for the Pistons, who ended a four-game losing streak. Chucky Atkins and Jerome Williams added 11 apiece.

Milwaukee’s Glenn Robinson led all scorers with 34 points. Sam Cassell added 13 points and 16 assists.

It was an intense, physical game, with the two teams combining for 56 fouls and 72 free throws.

Miami 81, Orlando 59--Brian Grant had 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Heat, which outscored the Magic, 29-9, in the fourth quarter at Orlando, Fla.

Orlando’s John Amaechi started the fourth quarter with a basket that tied the score at 52-52. But the Magic made only two more shots the rest of the game.

Orlando made only three of 16 shots in the fourth quarter, missing all five of its three-point attempts.

Seattle 106, New Jersey 97--Patrick Ewing had season highs of 18 points and 18 rebounds to lead the SuperSonics at Seattle.

The Nets lost for the fourth consecutive time despite Stephon Marbury’s 29 points.

Ewing scored 11 points in the third quarter, when the SuperSonics, who won their fifth in a row, overcame an eight-point halftime deficit to move in front by six at the end of the period.

Ruben Patterson led the SuperSonics with 21 points, and Brent Barry and Gary Payton each scored 17.

Atlanta 101, Cleveland 90--Jason Terry scored 20 points at Cleveland to lead five players in double figures for the Hawks, who ended a five-game losing streak.

Rookie DerMarr Johnson scored a season-high 19 points for Atlanta.

The Cavaliers got as close as 94-88 with 1:56 to play but lost for the 13th time in 18 games.

Toronto 90, Chicago 80--With Vince Carter sidelined because of a sore knee, his Toronto teammates picked up the slack at Chicago.

Antonio Davis and Alvin Williams led six Raptors in double figures with 15 points each, and Davis also had 12 rebounds. Charles Oakley had 14 rebounds and 10 points.

Ron Mercer had 23 points for the Bulls, who extended their season-worst losing streak to 11 games.