Dallas — Trailing by 12 points with 4:27 left, having gone longer than that since they last scored, the Minnesota Timberwolves could've been thinking about finally going home after a week on the road.
The Dallas Mavericks wish they had been.
Kevin Garnett made two free throws with 5.9 seconds left, and Trenton Hassell blocked Jerry Stackhouse's long jumper at the buzzer, giving the Timberwolves an 83-82 victory Monday night in the Mavericks' first of several games without Dirk Nowitzki.
Minnesota led for a total of 26.5 seconds. The first 20.6 came in the final minute of the third quarter; the only other time was the one that mattered.
"They are in their locker room trying to figure out how they lost," T-Wolves coach Flip Saunders said. "We are in here trying to figure out how we won."
Garnett had 21 points, 17 rebounds and nine assists -- far below the 29.5 points and 17.8 rebounds he averaged against Dallas last season, yet he seemed as dominant as ever. He scored the go-ahead points the first time Minnesota led, and his final assist came on the Timberwolves' final basket.
"It's a big win because the Mavericks are going to be a team to be reckoned with in the West, with Dirk or without him," Garnett said. "It's an emotional win. It felt like a playoff atmosphere in the second half."
Garnett struggled early, partly because he hurt his right shoulder two days before but also because he had to deal with Dallas' Erick Dampier in the paint. Garnett's frustration boiled over with a cheap shot on Josh Howard, leading to the technical foul that put the Mavericks up 79-67 late in the fourth quarter.
But with Nowitzki and Michael Finley, Dallas' top two scorers, out because of ankle injuries, the Mavs couldn't hold it.
Dallas made only one of nine shots the rest of the way. The Mavericks' final point was a free throw by Stackhouse with 1:33 left that put them up by five.
"This is a game we should have won, but we let it go down the drain," said Dampier, criticizing teammates. "Even without Dirk and Finley, we still have enough talent to compete and win every night."
Sam Cassell, who had 16 points, scored with 4:14 left to start Minnesota's rally, although at the time it was more of a drought-ender. The Timberwolves hadn't scored since the 9:27 mark, when Eddie Griffin tied the game at 67 with a three-pointer.
Hornets 76, Jazz 75
Salt Lake City -- New Orleans won for the first time this season, beating Utah behind 20 points and 11 rebounds by Jamaal Magloire.
The Hornets improved to 1-8 after Andrei Kirilenko missed two free throws with 4.4 seconds left, and Gordan Giricek's jumper at the buzzer bounced off the rim.
Suns 100, Bulls 82
Phoenix -- Shawn Marion and Amare Stoudemire scored 21 points apiece, and Phoenix made sure Chicago remained the NBA's only winless team.
Ben Gordon scored 20 points for the Bulls, who matched a franchise record for consecutive losses to start a season. The Bulls opened with 1967-68 season 0-9.
Marion added a season-high 16 rebounds and Steve Nash added 15 points and six assists for the Suns, who have won five straight. Phoenix's 9-2 record -- tied with Seattle for first in the Western Conference -- is the team's best start since 1997-98.
Grizzlies 93, Spurs 90
Memphis, Tenn. -- Bonzi Wells had 26 points, including the go-ahead three-pointer with less than a minute left, to lead Memphis. Tim Duncan led the Spurs with 26 points and nine rebounds, and Tony Parker added 18 points.
No comments
Commenting is turned off for this story.