Timberwolves-Magic Preview

By JORDAN GARRETSON
Posted Dec 16 2012 6:43PM

The Minnesota Timberwolves have spent most of the season trying to stay afloat as they waited on two returns.

They'll likely finally have their two centerpieces back together Monday night as they visit the Orlando Magic.

Star point guard Ricky Rubio returned Saturday, helping Minnesota (12-9) to a 114-106 overtime victory against Dallas in his first game since tearing two knee ligaments in March. Rubio posted nine assists and eight points while having his minutes capped at 19, but the emotional lift his return provided may have been even bigger for the Timberwolves as they captured their fourth straight win.

"Just because his talent and who he is," coach Rick Adelman told the team's official website. "Our guys watched him work and get ready for this game. They know what type of player he is. He just rubs off and we found that out last year when we lost him."

All-Star teammate Kevin Love, who missed Minnesota's first nine games with a broken right hand, sat out Saturday because of flu-like symptoms, but is expected to play Monday. Despite their absences, the Timberwolves have managed to stay in playoff position in the Western Conference.

The expectations should instantly rise with Rubio and Love back on the court together. Minnesota was in contention for a playoff spot last season before Rubio's injury, then went 5-20 to finish 26-40.

The Wolves won Saturday without either player on the floor in overtime after Rubio missed a potential game-winning 3-pointer late in regulation. Andrei Kirilenko scored five points in OT.

"I think we're going to do big things with this team this year," said Rubio, who averaged 10.6 points and 8.2 assists in 2011-12.

"Just showing how we played in the overtime ... it was amazing."

Dante Cunningham started in Love's place but Derrick Williams gave the Wolves the bigger boost at forward. Williams, averaging 8.8 points, scored 16 in 19 minutes, his second-highest point total of the season.

"With Kevin out, you've got to be aggressive," Williams said. "That man puts up a lot of numbers, and we've got to be able to match that with myself and Dante Cunningham playing the 4."

Neither Love nor Rubio played in the Timberwolves' first meeting with Orlando on Nov. 7, but Luke Ridnour scored a game-high 19 points to help Minnesota snap a seven-game skid in this series with a 90-75 home win.

The Magic (10-13) have been trying to forge a new identity after the departure of Dwight Howard, something they're having more success with of late. They finished with a 15-5 run Saturday for a 107-98 win at Charlotte, their third victory in four games.

Arron Afflalo and Glen Davis have shouldered much of the scoring load, averaging 16.2 and 15.7 points, respectively. They each scored 20 against the Bobcats.

"This is a new team and we're still finding each other," Davis said. "As a team, we're learning and this was a game where we learned from our past experience."

Davis scores 28, leads Magic to win

Posted Dec 17 2012 11:20PM

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) The Orlando Magic had to figure out how to defend down low before they could make their move.

Using a second-half rally, Glen Davis and the Magic won their third straight with a 102-93 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

"It boiled down to who was going to be the aggressor, that team was going to win," Magic coach Jacque Vaughn said. "That was my message at halftime. It was good to see our bigs respond to that kind of physicality."

Orlando got manhandled inside by Minnesota's front line in the first half, but Magic big men Davis and Nikola Vucevic pushed back in the second half to help their team to its third straight victory.

Davis scored a game-high 28 points and Vucevic had his third straight double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds. J.J. Redick contributed 18 points and seven assists as Orlando rallied from 15 points down in the third quarter to snap Minnesota's four-game win streak.

Kevin Love led Minnesota with 23 points and 15 rebounds and Nikola Pekovic added 19 points and 12 rebounds, but they did most of their damage in the first half when Minnesota shot 49 percent from the field while building a 61-49 lead at the break.

The Timberwolves shot only 31.9 percent in the second half (15 of 47) with Love and Pekovic a combined 5 for 18 (29.4 percent).

"What happened in the second half is exactly what has been happening the last few games," Pekovic said. "We have a good first half and then lose our concentration. They played good. They didn't give up, even when they were losing by 15. They just kept playing."

"You give a team a chance to get going, especially at home, you're going to end up in trouble," Minnesota coach Rick Adelman said. "That's what happened to us. We were up 15, we had some great opportunities and we could not make a shot."

Davis fueled the rally with a five-minute stretch in the third quarter where he made all six shots, three of them dunks. The Magic's big man beat Love and Pekovic down the floor time and again to get position inside for easy baskets.

"The things I got were just open court stuff, running the floor, getting behind their defense," Davis said. "Their bigs got them going in the first half and coach (Vaughn) said `Hey look, we need to fight back,' and that is what we did."

Minnesota led 87-85 with six minutes left in the game when Arron Afflalo hit a 3-pointer to start a 9-0 run by Orlando. Vucevic finished the run with a layup that made it 94-87 with 3:23 left in the game.

Love scored on a hook shot and Andre Kirilenko had a dunk to make it 94-91 with 2:53 left in the game, but Davis scored six straight points and Redick hit a layup that gave Orlando a 102-91 lead with 44 seconds left.

"I'm pleased with the improvements we've made individually and as a team," Vaughn said. "We're playing harder and that's fun to see. We're believing in each other, but we still know that we have a lot of work to do."

Minnesota's big men had 20 points in the paint in the first 10 minutes of the game, helping the Timberwolves jump out to a 28-17 lead. Pekovic led the way with 11 points and six rebounds, four of them at the offensive end.

The Magic, however, closed the period with a 10-1 and trailed only 29-27. Orlando got 10 points from center Vucevic and six from Redick to keep close.

The Timberwolves were even better at the end of the second period, going on a 20-7 run to build their halftime advantage. Pekovic, Love and Andre Kirilenko were the stars again, accounting for all 20 points.

NOTES: When Davis received a technical foul in the second quarter, it was only the second technical on the Magic all season. . Pekovic is averaging 23.2 points and 9.3 rebounds in his last four games. . The Magic are 8-1 in game in which they score 100 points or more. . Minnesota G Ricky Rubio wasn't much of a factor in his second game back from a knee injury. Rubio missed all three shots he took, but did get four assists in 16 minutes.

Notebook: Magic 102, Timberwolves 93

Dick Scanlon, for NBA.com
Posted Mon Dec 17, 2012 11:18 PM - Updated Mon Dec 17, 2012 11:23 PM

THE FACTS: Glen Davis and J.J. Redick led a fourth-quarter rally that helped the Orlando Magic overtake the Minnesota Timberwolves, 102-93. Davis finished with a game-high 28 points while Redick had seven of his 18 points and four assists in the fourth quarter.

Kevin Love had 23 points and 15 rebounds for the Timberwolves, who dominated the paint in the first half and led, 68-53, early in the second half. The loss ended Minnesota's four-game winning streak.

The Magic have won three straight for the first time this season.

THE STAT: Minnesota's front-court trio of Love, Andrei Kirilenko and Nikola Pekovic combined for 43 points (on 17-for-29 shooting in the first half, and 12 points (on 6-for-22 shooting) in the second half.

QUOTABLE: "I didn't like the way we played in the first half. I don't think anyone on our team did . . . We let Pekovic and Love just go off in the first half, and in the third quarter we started clamping down defensively and (the Timberwolves) scored 32 points in the second half."
-- Redick.

QUOTABLE II: "It build down to who was going to be the aggressor; that was my message at halftime. Real simple, that team was going to win. It was greg to see our bigs take that challenge on and play with extreme physicality."
-- Magic coach Jacque Vaughn.

TURNING POINT: Minnesota led by seven in the third quarter when Jameer Nelson missed a 3-point shot, but Josh McRoberts slid in from the side and slammed down the rebound, bringing the crowd into the game.

HOT: The Magic shot 54 percent for the game and 63 percent (12-for-19) in the fourth quarter.

QUOTABLE III: "They got confidence and they started running out on us. We didn't get back.. When you get confidence, especially down the stretch of a game like that, it is tough to be stopped. They got all the bounces that went their way and it was a tale of two halves."
-- Love.

NOT: The Timberwolves shot 7-for-21 in the final quarter.

GOOD MOVE: McRoberts, who did not get off the bench in five of the preceding seven games, played 23 minutes and gave the Magic a physical and emotional lift. He had a plus-minus of plus-15.

BAD MOVE: The Timberwolves started the fourth quarter with a three-guard lineup that included Alexei Shved, Jose Berea and Ricky Rubio. They missed six of seven shots and turned the ball over twice in a four-minute span in which a four-point lead turned into a three-point deficit.

IN THE ARENA: The crowd of 16,992 showed its approval of the second-half rally with a spontaneous and enthusiastic standing ovation in the closing minutes.

FANTASY SPOTLIGHT: Rubio's comeback might take a while. In only his second game back from a knee injury sustained last March, the 22-year-old Minnesota guard played 16 scoreless minutes with four assists and three turnovers. "I think he's just trying a little bit too hard. It'll come in time," said Minnesota coach Rick Adelman.

ROOKIE WATCH: Shved and Magic rookies Maurice Harkless and Andrew Nicholson were non-factors. Nicholson, one of the more productive NBA rookies in the last two weeks, went scoreless in 11 minutes.

NOTABLE: Magic center Nikola Vucevic had his third-straight double-digit rebound game with 11. ... Only 20 free throws (12 by Minnesota) were shot in the game. ... The Magic have won eight of their last nine against the Timberwolves.

UP NEXT: For the Timberwolves: Tuesday @ Miami, Thursday vs. Oklahoma City, Sunday @ New York. For the Magic: Wednesday vs. Washington, Friday @ Toronto, Sunday vs. Utah.

• Timberwolves: Budinger, Roy
• Magic: Harrington, Turkoglu

• Timberwolves: --
• Magic: Davis

• Lead Changes: 6
• Times Tied: 5

• Arena: Amway Center, Orlando, FL
• Officials: #41 Ken Mauer, #47 Bennie Adams, #56 Mark Ayotte
• Attendance: 16992
• Duration: 1:58