National Basketball Association
Minnesota 93, Detroit 85
When: 8:00 PM ET, Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Where: Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Officials:
#42 Eric Lewis, #38 Michael Smith, # Josh Tiven
Attendance:
15598
By SportsDirect Inc.
Kevin Love collected 20 points and 17 rebounds and rookie Ricky Rubio added nine points, eight assists, seven rebounds and six steals as the Minnesota Timberwolves used a strong fourth quarter to overtake the visiting Detroit Pistons in a 93-85 victory on Wednesday.
Wesley Johnson, Anthony Tolliver and Nikola Pekovic added 11 points apiece for the Timberwolves, who outscored the Pistons 29-14 in the fourth quarter.
Minnesota built plenty of early leads last season only to have them disappear when the fourth quarter rolled around. This season, under new coach Rick Adelman, has been a different story.
The Timberwolves shot just 29 percent (13 of 45) from the floor in the first half but came out strong after the break, trading baskets with the Pistons in the third as the offense rounded into form.
In the fourth quarter, Minnesota brought the offense and defense at the same time, using a 10-2 run at the start of the period to take a lead. Love’s jumper with 5:58 left gave the Timberwolves the edge for good, 81-79.
Rubio, who went scoreless in the first half, did his damage on defense down the stretch, grabbing two steals and taking a charge in the final minutes to keep Minnesota clear.
Tayshaun Prince scored 29 points to lead Detroit.
Top Game Performances
| Detroit |
|
Minnesota |
|
Tayshaun Prince 29 |
Scoring |
Kevin Love 20 |
|
Brandon Knight 6 |
Assists |
Ricky Rubio 8 |
|
Greg Monroe 12 |
Rebounds |
Kevin Love 17 |
|
Ben Gordon 3 |
Free Throws Made |
Ricky Rubio 7 |
|
Ben Wallace 3 |
Steals |
Ricky Rubio 6 |
|
Jonas Jerebko 2 |
Blocks |
Nikola Pekovic 1 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
| Detroit
|
85 |
44.3 |
5-11 |
10-21 |
15 |
41 |
5 |
10 |
19 |
| Minnesota
|
93 |
40.0 |
8-23 |
25-34 |
14 |
44 |
4 |
11 |
15 |
Upcoming Games
-
Minnesota will play their next game on the road against L.A. Clippers. The Timberwolves have a W/L % of .333 after a win and .500 after a loss.
-
Detroit will play their next game at home against Memphis. The Pistons have a W/L % of .250 after a win and .182 after a loss.
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