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Monday, Jan. 17 8:00pm ET
Sealy banks in game-winning 3-pointer | |||||
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 GAME FLOW
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- It took an impossible shot to cap an improbable victory for the Minnesota Timberwolves. Malik Sealy banked in a 3-pointer as time expired to give the Timberwolves a 101-100 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Monday night. Minnesota (19-16), playing without starting point guard Terrell Brandon against the best team in the Eastern Conference, was 10 points behind in the fourth quarter and trailed 100-98 after Mark Jackson hit a short jumper with 1.7 seconds to play. But Sealy launched his game-winner with Jalen Rose running at him, and the shot banked off the glass and through the net as the buzzer sounded. "The irony of the whole play was that I was supposed to be taking the ball out of bounds and passing to Sam Mitchell," Sealy said. "But I knew Sam had just come off the bench and he might be stiff so I said, 'Let me try.' " Mitchell and Sealy switched places, and the two pulled off a play called, appropriately, "Last Shot." Sealy fell to the floor after shooting the ball, and he was soon mobbed by Wolves players and coaches. "I got it up high, and I certainly didn't call 'glass,"' Sealy said. "I don't remember much else, except that after a while it was hard to breathe." Kevin Garnett scored 15 of his career-high 37 points in the fourth quarter, and Joe Smith added 14 of his 16 points in the quarter, setting the stage for a see-saw finish. Garnett hit three consecutive jumpers to tie the score, the last time at 98-98, but Indiana (25-12) answered all three times. Dale Davis hit two turnaround jumpers, then Jackson isolated one-on-one, backed into the lane and released his potential game-winning shot with one hand. Minnesota won despite learning of Brandon's status shortly before pregame warmups. Brandon strained his right calf and Achilles tendon in a loss Saturday to the Los Angeles Lakers, and the injury did not respond properly to treatment. Rookie William Avery started in his place. Smits scored 14 of his points in the third quarter to give the Pacers a 77-67 lead entering the final 12 minutes. But Smith scored 11 of the Wolves' first 14 points in the fourth quarter, most of them in the paint. That brought the crowd into the game and sent the hot-shooting but less physical Smits to the bench. "Before the fourth quarter, (coach) Flip (Saunders) told me to be aggressive," Smith said. "He told me to stop settling for the jumper. Once I started getting aggressive, they had to change the matchup." Then Garnett took over, hitting his final six shots. "On the court, I know the guys look to me for leadership," Garnett said. "So I told them to just jump on my back and let's go." His turnaround jumper with 2:52 to play gave Minnesota its first lead since early in the third quarter at 91-90. Reggie Miller converted a four-point play with 2:24 to go to give Indiana a 94-91 lead. Smith's free throw and Garnett's turnaround jumper tied the score. "They did a tremendous job hanging around all game," Smits said. "Garnett kept them in the game. He was getting defended and he was making difficult shots. Fadeaways, turnarounds -- tough shots, but he made them." Sealy, Smith and Garnett scored all 34 of the Wolves' points in the fourth quarter. Sealy matched Smith with 16 points for the game. "We had a chance to win," Miller said. "And Sealy comes up with an improbable shot." Game notesBrandon, listed as day-to-day, is expected to be return for Wednesday's game in Utah, the start of a five-game road trip. ... Despite missing Brandon, the Wolves had 33 assists and just seven turnovers. ... Indiana's Austin Croshere had a career-high 13 rebounds and had a point-rebound double-double for the third time in as many games. ... The Pacers had won six of their previous seven games at Target Center. ... Indiana is 10-10 on the road, 15-2 on the road. ... With Wednesday's game in Utah, the Wolves will have played all four division leaders in a five-game stretch. | ALSO SEE NBA Scoreboard Indiana Clubhouse Minnesota Clubhouse null
RECAPS Boston 105 Washington 101
Minnesota 101
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