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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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 GAME FLOW
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- The Portland Trail Blazers went more than
seven minutes without scoring during the fourth quarter of a close
game, and they still won.
That might reveal less about the Trail Blazers' veteran poise
than the youth of the struggling Minnesota Timberwolves.
|  | | Scottie Pippen scored 15 points in 42 long minutes against the T-Wolves. |
Rasheed Wallace scored 23 points, and Steve Smith's leaning
one-hander with 14.5 seconds left helped the Blazers survive a
terrible fourth-quarter slump to beat the Timberwolves 90-86
Thursday night.
"We're making mental mistakes, and our offense doesn't seem to
have any rhythm to it," said Scottie Pippen, who had 15 points for
Portland. "And as a result, we are turning the ball over. Our
defense is what is keeping us together so far."
The Timberwolves trailed by 18 in the third quarter but climbed
back when Portland went 7:32 without a field goal. The Blazers kept
the lead by making nine of 13 free throws during the stretch, but
Minnesota pulled within 81-80 on Terrell Brandon's fastbreak layup
and free throw with 2:44 left.
A turnaround jumper by Kevin Garnett pulled Minnesota to 85-84 with 1:20 to go, but Malik Sealy's layup attempt rolled off the rim. After Smith's shot rattled around and fell in, the
Timberwolves needed a 3-pointer to tie, but the Blazers let Sealy
have an open path to the basket, and he missed a dunk with 10
seconds left.
"We needed that break," said Smith, who scored 18.
"Unfortunately for Malik, I know he wanted to make it, but we
needed that."
Garnett scored 26 points and Brandon had 20 points and 11
assists for the Timberwolves, who have lost four straight and seven
of nine.
"We definitely hate losing, but we gave it a tremendous
effort," Garnett said. "I think our team is a classic example of
guys who aren't all on the same page."
Portland moved a half-game ahead of the Los Angeles Lakers for
first place in the Pacific Division. The Blazers (16-5, .762) are
percentage points behind Miami (14-4, .778) for the best record in
the league.
Minnesota had lost its previous three games by an average of 15
points, and coach Flip Saunders was pleased by the performance.
"We had our chances," he said. "Malik feels terrible. But we
hung in there against the best team in the league."
Portland took just 11 shots in the fourth quarter, making five of them.
After Antonio Harvey's bank shot with 11:34 to go, the Blazers
didn't get another field goal until Brian Grant's layup with 4:02
left made it 81-75.
"We're always happy to get a win, but we're definitely not
celebrating," said Portland's Brian Grant, who had eight points
and 10 rebounds. "We've got to go in and practice and think about
what we're doing wrong, because there is a lot of things we could
be doing better. There are so many weaknesses that we are
displaying."
Both teams put together scoring runs in the first half, but
Portland's were stronger. After trailing 16-6, the Blazers held
Minnesota without a field goal for nearly six minutes and went
ahead 28-21.
The Timberwolves went on an 11-2 run, but Portland scored the
last 11 points of the second quarter to take a 41-32 halftime lead.
Wallace showed his athleticism by blocking Radoslav Nesterovic's shot, falling backward onto press row, then running downcourt to
make a hook shot over Nesterovic while drawing a foul.
Portland built the lead to 18 on a fastbreak dunk by Pippen, but
the Timberwolves climbed back within 66-60 on two free throws by
Tom Hammonds. A driving layup by Pippen made it 68-60 heading into
the fourth.
Game notes
Blazers forward Detlef Schrempf was held out by Dunleavy
with a pinched nerve that has limited his neck movement. ...
Minnesota rookie Wally Szczerbiak sat out his third game in the last four with a sore right knee. Center Dean Garrett did not play with a sore left knee. ... Nesterovic, Garrett's replacement at
center, scored nine points. He had one point on 0-for-6 shooting in
the first game against Portland. ... Tracy Brandon-Cuttendon, the
older sister of Portland native Terrell Brandon, sang the national
anthem.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Minnesota Clubhouse
Portland Clubhouse
Struggling Blazers feeling weight of expectations
RECAPS
San Antonio 99
Vancouver 91
Phoenix 99
Washington 85
Portland 90
Minnesota 86
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