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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
DENVER (AP) – The Minnesota Timberwolves had K.G. The Denver
Nuggets looked like they needed an EKG.
|  | | Pistons guard Jerry Stackhouse wraps up the Timberwolves' Chauncey Billups. |
Kevin Garnett had 24 points and 14 rebounds Friday night as the
Timberwolves beat the Nuggets 89-71 in a surprisingly one-sided
matchup of teams fighting for the final playoff spot in the West.
The Nuggets had a season-low point total and failed to
capitalize on their impressive victory over the Los Angeles Lakers
on Wednesday. They fell 5 1/2 games behind the Timberwolves (35-24)
for the eighth playoff spot.
"I told our guys, `You play in the regular season to prepare
for the playoffs,"' Minnesota coach Flip Saunders said. "This
should be like a playoff game for us. We have to come out with that
type of intensity."
Denver, which has lost 12 of 16, looked nothing like playoff
contenders, shooting 36 percent from the field and committing 16
turnovers.
"We have to check ourselves to see if we really want to make
this playoff run or not," Nuggets guard Robert Pack said. "The
Laker game seemed like it would be a big confidence builder for us,
we'd come out more aggressive and hungrier, but we didn't do
that."
Minnesota took the lead for good with a 12-0 run in the second
quarter.
It took the Nuggets 7:17 to make a shot in the fourth quarter.
By then, Minnesota had a 27-point lead and improved to 3-8 since
its franchise-record 11-game winning streak.
"I can live with the losses," Denver coach Dan Issel said.
"No matter what game you play, you're going to lose. I can't live
with that kind of effort."
The Timberwolves dominated Denver in nearly every category. They
held a 51-32 rebounding edge, had 16 second-chance points and
outscored the usually uptempo Nuggets 17-8 on the fast break.
Denver (30-30) and Minnesota play again in three weeks. If
Friday night was any indication, it may not carry the same playoff
urgency.
"All the games from here on in are all about playoffs spots,"
Garnett said. "We all knew this team was chasing us and we tried
to step up our play."
Garnett was 9-for-14 from the field and outplayed Olympic
teammate Antonio McDyess, who went 5-for-13 and finished with 12
points.
Dean Garrett was the only other Minnesota player to score in
double figures. He had 10 points as the Timberwolves emptied their
bench in the game's final eight minutes.
Raef LaFrentz led the Nuggets with 16 points and Nick Van Exel
had 10 on 4-for-13 shooting.
The Timberwolves, who lost twice to Denver in November, led by
10 at halftime and quickly pushed the advantage to 24 in the first
five minutes of the third quarter.
Denver got as close as 17 on its first possession of the fourth,
but Minnesota scored the next nine points while the Nuggets missed
three straight shots and committed four turnovers.
"They just came out with a lot more fire," McDyess said.
"Once they got it going, it seemed like it took just two or three
minutes and we just laid down."
Minnesota went 5-for-19 in the first quarter but erased a
five-point deficit by holding Denver scoreless over a 5:39 stretch
of the second. The Nuggets were 5-for-16 in the quarter and trailed
45-35 at the half.
Game notes
Denver guard Tariq Abdul-Wahad sat out because of tonsillitis.
He will have his tonsils removed next week. ... Minnesota had 12
offensive rebounds in the first half, while Denver had 16 total
rebounds. ... Garnett grabbed his 4,000th career rebound in the
third quarter. ... Minnesota guard Chauncey Billups is from Denver and
his younger brother, Rodney, had a state playoff game a few miles
from the Pepsi Center on Friday night. ... The Nuggets fell to 15-5
against Western Conference teams at home. ... Minnesota is 32-3
when leading after three.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Minnesota Clubhouse
Denver Clubhouse
RECAPS
Seattle 86
Indiana 83
Philadelphia 107
Washington 102
Charlotte 105
Atlanta 99
Boston 103
Utah 99
Orlando 120
Cleveland 94
Toronto 107
New Jersey 90
Miami 97
Detroit 93
Chicago 81
New York 72
Minnesota 89
Denver 71
LA Clippers 88
Sacramento 81
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