Minneapolis ? The Indiana Pacers are having a difficult time trying to solve their shooting woes.

Kevin Garnett had 28 points to lead the Minnesota Timberwolves to their fifth straight victory, 102-80 over the Pacers Saturday night. Backup Fred Hoiberg had 21 points, and Sam Cassell added 18 points and 10 assists for the Timberwolves.

Jermaine O’Neal led Indiana with 16 points but hit just 6-of-18 from the field for the Pacers, who continued their inconsistent shooting by hitting on just 35 percent of their field goals. It was the Pacers’ worst shooting performance of the season and their third consecutive game under 40 percent.

“I don’t know what the solution is for bad shooting,” O’Neal said. “Especially if you’re missing the shots you should take. I do know that your effort has to be a lot higher when you’re not shooting the ball well.”

The Wolves hit 52 percent of their shots for the game and led by as many as 36.

“I think we’re in a little bit of a rhythm right now,” Garnett said. “I think our defense is gorgeous right now. For the most part, we’re completing games.”

Garnett added nine rebounds, six assists and seven blocks, then mused after the game on the prospects of a quadruple-double: “That would have been something, huh?”

Clippers 115, Mavericks 105

Dallas — Corey Maggette scored 26 points and Quentin Richardson had 25 points and 13 rebounds as Los Angeles handed Dallas its second home loss. Elton Brand had 22 points and 20 rebounds for the Clippers, who had won only four of their previous 22 meetings with the Mavericks. Los Angeles is 2-0 against Dallas this season. Antawn Jamison had 26 points, Dirk Nowitzki 23 and Steve Nash 20 for the Mavericks.

Hornets 94, Grizzlies 89

New Orleans — Baron Davis had 25 points and 12 assists, and New Orleans broke out of a shooting slump to snap a three-game losing streak. Jamaal Magloire added 18 points and 13 rebounds, and P.J. Brown finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds for the Hornets, whose skid was its longest this season.

David Wesley, coming off his worst game of the season in New Orleans’ loss Thursday night to Sacramento, started strong as the Hornets built an early lead. He finished with 16 points. Bonzi Wells came off the bench to lead Memphis with 18 points.

Knicks 103, Hawks 92

New York — Don Chaney yanked Howard Eisley and inserted Frank Williams early in the third quarter, a snap coaching decision that may have saved Chaney’s job. Williams had four assists in a 15-0 third-quarter run that gave New York the lead for good in a victory over Atlanta. The victory was just the third in 11 games for the Knicks (10-18), whose coach is reportedly in danger of being fired if the team continues to languish amid the lower half of the woeful Atlantic Division.

Keith Van Horn scored 11 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter, and Allan Houston had 20.

Spurs 101, Blazers 91

Portland, Ore. — Tim Duncan had 26 points and 10 rebounds for his league-leading 23rd double-double this season, and San Antonio extended its winning streak to 10 games with a victory over Portland.

The winning streak matches the Los Angeles Lakers’ season-best from Nov. 19 to Dec. 9, and it is San Antonio’s longest since winning 11 straight last season.

Cavaliers 95, Bulls 87

Chicago — LeBron James did the No. 23 proud in his idol’s house. With Michael Jordan watching from a skybox, James scored a game-high 32 points and had a career-high 10 assists to lead Cleveland to its second straight road win.

Sonics 115, Nuggets 106

Denver — Richie Frahm hit six three-pointers and scored a career-high 31 points, and Ronald Murray added 24 points and 10 assists to lead Seattle past Denver. The Sonics were coming off a lopsided loss Friday night to San Antonio and played without guards Antonio Daniels and Brent Barry.

Suns 102, Rockets 87

Phoenix — Shawn Marion scored 15 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter, helping Phoenix stave off Houston’s rally. Stephon Marbury had 25 points, Joe Johnson 16 and Casey Jacobsen 12 in the victory, new Suns coach Mike D’Antoni’s second in six games since he replaced Frank Johnson. Marion also had 11 rebounds for his 12th double-double.

Bucks 92, Nets 87

Milwaukee — Tim Thomas scored 16 of his 21 points in the first quarter and Milwaukee scored eight of the final 11 points in a victory over New Jersey. Michael Redd added 17 points, including 10 in the fourth quarter.