Timberwolves Top Warriors to End 16-Game Road Skid

Minnesota 109, Golden State 108
OAKLAND, Calif., Jan. 21 (AP) -- As soon as Al Harrington's tip-in attempt rolled off the rim and the buzzer went off, the Minnesota Timberwolves ran off the court and celebrated in an opponent's arena.

That was a feeling that had been a long time coming.

The Timberwolves snapped a 16-game road losing streak behind Ryan Gomes' career-high 35 points and 11 rebounds Monday, beating the Golden State Warriors 109-108.

"We were excited as you could tell on the floor,'' coach Randy Wittman said "It's been a long time coming, on the road especially. It's been a trying season. ... So hey, maybe we're growing a little bit. Tonight was the first night I didn't see the shyness of trying to make a play. We were aggressive all the way to the end.''

Al Jefferson added 21 points and 12 rebounds and Marco Jaric had 16 points, 10 assists and eight boards for the Timberwolves, who won just their second road game of the season and first since a 103-94 win at New Orleans on Nov. 26.

"We were just desperate to get a win, on the road or at home,'' Jaric said. "We know we're a better team than our record shows but nobody cares about that. At the end of the day people will say this Minnesota team won only so many games. We want to show down the stretch that we are a better team than the numbers show right now.''

Gomes hit two free throws with 54.5 seconds remaining to give the Timberwolves a 109-108 lead. After Baron Davis missed a 3-pointer with 32 seconds left at the other end, Golden State got one last chance following Jaric's missed 3-pointer with 8.8 seconds to go.

Davis then missed a driving layup and Harrington couldn't tip in the miss at the buzzer, giving Minnesota just its second win in the past 15 games.

"I just can't believe I missed that layup,'' Davis said. "That's all I can say. We weren't tired. Fatigue had nothing to do with it. You have to give them credit. They played hard.''

The Warriors began a stretch of 13 home games in 16 contests with a disappointing loss to the NBA's worst team. Monta Ellis led the way with 28 points, Matt Barnes added 20 and Stephen Jackson had 18.

"I'm pretty disappointed with our performance tonight,'' Nelson said. "There didn't seem to be much energy, much passion, or much urgency to the game. ... We've been playing very well but we laid an egg tonight. What can I tell you.''

Davis finished with 15 points on 5-of-14 shooting and missed five free throws as well, including one with 1:07 remaining and Golden State up by one. Gomes drew the foul at the other and converted both free throws to give Minnesota the win.

Gomes repeatedly took advantage of the smaller Warriors, posting up both Davis and Jackson to get some easy points. Wittman said he called the same play for the final 5 minutes, running the offense through Jefferson and Gomes in the post.

"Coach called a few sets for me and they kept going and I kept playing,'' Gomes said. "I've been posting up a lot of smaller guys. It works to my advantage.''

Davis spent Sunday at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, where his documentary on gang life in South Central Los Angeles, "Made in America,'' debuted.

The Warriors made only one field goal during a nearly 6-minute span midway through the third quarter, turning an eight-point lead into an 85-80 deficit heading into the fourth quarter. The Timberwolves built the lead up to 11 in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter before Golden State rallied.

Barnes sparked a 10-1 run by scoring five points to pull the Warriors to 93-91. But the Timberwolves didn't back down, getting a key 3-pointer from Antoine Walker to end the spurt.

Gomes got going late in the first period, scoring Minnesota's first eight points of a quarter-ending 13-2 run that gave the Timberwolves a 33-23 lead after one. Golden State then went on a 15-2 run early in the second quarter capped by Barnes' steal and dunk. The Warriors led 52-49 at the half.

source : Nba.com