Road skid ends at 11 - 明尼蘇達灰狼 Minnesota Timberwolves

http://www.twincities.com/timberwolves/ci_5492371

When Randy Wittman said he's done talking about the playoffs, that didn't
mean he's done thinking about trying to get there.

He's just tired of talking about it with reporters, he clarified before
Wednesday's game. "We've got to walk the talk," the Timberwolves coach said.

The Wolves did just that Wednesday night, overcoming a nine-point deficit
early in the fourth quarter en route to a 95-89 victory over the Sacramento
Kings at Arco Arena, finally ending their losing streak on the road, the
longest of the season, at 11 games.

It was Minnesota's first road win since Jan. 27 against the Los Angeles
Clippers.

The win boosted the Wolves' playoff hopes, although they trail the Golden
State Warriors by two games in the race for the eighth and final playoff spot
in the Western Conference.

"It was very important" to end the losing streak, Wolves star Kevin Garnett
said. "We're a team full of competitors. (The losing streak) kicked our
(butts)."

Garnett said after Tuesday's 108-90 loss at Phoenix that the Wolves had to
win the final two outings on their five-game road trip to keep alive any
hopes of making the playoffs.

Garnett wasn't the only Wolves player to say as much. Before the road trip
began, Ricky Davis said they probably needed to win four games. Then Trenton
Hassell said after an 0-2 start that they needed to sweep the rest.

The Wolves, 1-3 on this road trip, play Friday night at Seattle before
heading home. On Wednesday, it was two Wolves rookies who made the clutch baskets down the
stretch. Craig Smith converted a three-point play, and Randy Foye sealed the
win with a jumper. Foye led Minnesota with 24 points on 9-of-12 shooting.

"I made so many shots in warmups," Foye said. "I made about 25 in a row, so I
stopped right there and told coach I'm ready to go."

Garnett added 17 points and 18 rebounds. The Wolves committed just 14
turnovers and shot 47.4 percent.

They trailed 70-63 to start the fourth quarter. Then Francisco Garcia gave
the Kings their biggest lead of the night, 72-63, with a jumper that bounced
off the rim three times before dropping through the basket.

But the Wolves didn't give in, and they managed to stay focused despite their
constant complaining about the officiating. Wittman was called for a
technical foul in the fourth quarter after Garnett received one in the third.

"We did our yelling and stayed in it," Wittman said.

Foye's driving layup past Mike Bibby with 5:59 left in the fourth quarter cut
Sacramento's lead to 75-74.

After a free throw and a Kevin Martin jumper pushed the Kings' lead to 78-74,
Foye's fast-break dunk with 4:33 left tied the score 78-78.

It was still tied 87-87 when Garnett penetrated and found Smith underneath.
Smith made a layup, drawing a foul, and converted a three-point play for a
90-87 lead with 1:18 left in the game.

Foye provided the final dagger when he used a screen from Garnett to free
himself for an open jumper, nailing it and putting the Wolves ahead 92-87
with 16.8 seconds left.

It wasn't a good omen for the Wolves when Sacramento's John Salmons hit a
three-pointer at the first-half buzzer, sending the Kings into the locker
room with a 48-43 lead.

It gave the Kings momentum going into the second half. That's not what
Wittman's team needed.

Third quarters have been problematic for the Wolves, who were outscored in
the past seven games by an average 29.4-23.1 in that period. The culprit:
allowing opponents to shoot 57.5 percent. This time, the Wolves were
outscored 22-20 in the third quarter.

The Kings took a 28-22 lead at the end of the first quarter. That continued a
troubling trend for Minnesota, which has led entering the second quarter in
just two of the past 24 games.

The Wolves haven't led on the road at the end of the first quarter since Jan.
27 against the Clippers. That was the last time they won a road game.



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