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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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 GAME FLOW
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Karl Malone will reflect on his individual
accomplishments when he's finished playing. That is, while the rest
of the NBA contends with a peaking Kevin Garnett.
|  | | Karl Malone shoots his historic shot over Terrell Brandon for points No. 30,000 and 30,001. |
Garnett had 29 points and 13 rebounds and Minnesota withstood
Malone's historic 35-point performance as the Timberwolves beat the
Utah Jazz 96-94 on Saturday.
Malone became the third player in NBA history to score 30,000
points when he made a layup with 8:53 left in the third quarter.
The 36-year old forward joined Wilt Chamberlain and career leader
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in the elite scoring group.
"I'll save my stat sheet," said the 23-year old Garnett, who
looks forward to the day he can tell folk tales of playing with
Malone.
"Save your videos. Save today's game. Save the stat sheets if
you have them," Garnett told reporters. "This is history."
"It's amazing," Utah's Jeff Hornacek said of his teammates
feat. "He does it night in and night out. You don't get to 30,000
without being consistent."
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Career scoring leaders
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Player
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Points
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Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
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38,387
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Wilt Chamberlain
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31,419
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x-Karl Malone
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30,023
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Michael Jordan
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29,277
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Moses Malone
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27,409
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Elvin Hayes
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27,313
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Oscar Robertson
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26,710
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Dominique Wilkins
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26,676
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John Havlicek
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26,395
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Alex English
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25,613
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x-Hakeem Olajuwon
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25,616
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Jerry West
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25,192
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Charles Barkley
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23,755
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Robert Parish
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23,344
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Adrian Dantley
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23,177
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Elgin Baylor
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23,157
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x-Patrick Ewing
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22,988
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Clyde Drexler
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22,195
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Larry Bird
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21,791
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Hal Greer
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21,586
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x-Player still active.
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Malone, who had 13 rebounds, wasn't as willing to talk about his
own statistics. Utah has lost three straight for the first time
since losing four in a row from Jan. 6-11, 1997.
"It's not all about the individual," Malone said. "It's a
team game. I'll take a win any day. After I finish playing, then
I'll kick back and think about it."
Anthony Peeler had 15 points off the bench for Minnesota, which
has won 17 of 21 since snapping an eight-game losing streak. It is
the first time the Timberwolves have beaten the Jazz three times in
a season.
Terrell Brandon had 15 points and seven assists for Minnesota
before turning his left ankle with 4:40 left in the game. Brandon
was writhing in pain for a few minutes, and had to be carried off
the court.
He was taken to a hospital for X-rays, which came back negative.
Team officials said that he has an ankle sprain and will be
reevaluated on Sunday.
"We'll cross our fingers that he's OK," coach Flip Saunders
said. "It was kind of a freak thing that happened. I'm sure,
either way, he'll be out a little bit."
Utah trailed 66-57 to start the fourth and got within 85-79 with
2:36 remaining, but Garnett and Peeler each hit shots to extend the
lead back to 10.
After the teams traded baskets twice, Stockton hit a shot and
two free throws to bring the Jazz within 92-88 with 29.3 seconds
left.
Malik Sealy and Sam Mitchell each hit a free throw and Malone
and Bryon Russell each made shots to bring Utah within 94-92 with
7.3 seconds left. Garnett had two free throws with 6.5 seconds left
to seal it.
Jeff Hornacek had 13 points and John Stockton scored 12 for
Utah, which looks to get back on track against Seattle on Tuesday.
"It's just part of basketball," Utah coach Jerry Sloan said of
his team's rare losing streak. "We're a little older team now and
we played some teams that have worn us down."
"Minnesota deserved to win. They outplayed us at the end of the
game."
Brandon scored eight points during a third-quarter run as
Minnesota extended its halftime lead to 51-38 with 7:45 left.
Both teams shot under 40 percent in the first quarter, with
Minnesota taking an 18-17 lead.
Utah continued its poor shooting in the second, scoring just 12
points in the quarter. It was the second time this season that
Minnesota held Utah to just 29 points in the first half.
Sealy banked in a buzzer-beater from five feet beyond the arc to
give the Wolves a 41-29 lead at halftime.
Game notes
Garnett will start in the All-Star game for the second time
after receiving the most votes (1,550,976) among Western C
Conference forwards. It is the first time since 1996-97 that Malone
will not start for the West. ... Utah shot 34.2 percent from the
field in the first half. The Jazz shot a season-low 31.6 percent
from the field Thursday in an 85-75 loss in Portland.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Utah Clubhouse
Minnesota Clubhouse
RECAPS
Detroit 90
Philadelphia 88
Minnesota 96
Utah 94
Toronto 106
Chicago 89
Indiana 94
Miami 84
Portland 81
San Antonio 67
Washington 103
Cleveland 98
Charlotte 100
Phoenix 79
Orlando 103
Atlanta 87
Dallas 107
Denver 96
Milwaukee 101
Seattle 99
LA Clippers 98
New Jersey 93
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