The Golden State Warriors and Minnesota Timberwolves met in a
battle of the beleaguered Tuesday night at Oracle Arena, and at
least for the evening, it was the home team that finally eased some
of its recent suffering. Reggie Williams hit two long 3-point shots
to break open a tight game midway through the fourth quarter and
Golden State impressively rode it to the finish, snapping its
seven-game losing streak with a 108-99 victory.
OAKLAND
The Golden State Warriors and Minnesota Timberwolves met in a battle of the beleaguered Tuesday night at Oracle Arena, and at least for the evening, it was the home team that finally eased some of its recent suffering.
Reggie Williams hit two long 3-point shots to break open a tight game midway through the fourth quarter and Golden State impressively rode it to the finish, snapping its seven-game losing streak with a 108-99 victory.
The Warriors had lost 12 of 13 games in addition to its seven straight heading into the game, their only win coming against these same Timberwolves in Minneapolis on Nov. 27. But Minnesota hadn’t been much better, having lost nine of its previous 11. The Wolves were also an abysmal 1-12 on the road.
The visitors put up a game effort for 3 { quarters but couldn’t hang down the stretch, particularly when Williams launched two long 3s to boost a one-point lead to 87-80 with 7:44 left. The Warriors never really looked back from there.
Monta Ellis led all scorers with 34 points, but it was Williams, the Development League discovery who logged a career-high 31 last week against San Antonio, who was the difference in this victory. Williams scored 26 points, 22 in the second half and 12 in the fourth quarter.
Coach Keith Smart found a working combination in the second half and stuck with it down the stretch. Forward Lou Amundsen logged 27 minutes and played almost the entire second half, while recent signee Acie Law played 21 minutes including almost all of the fourth quarter. Law scored seven of his nine points in the final quarter, and Amundsen was a solid defensive presence on Minnesota’s rugged Kevin Love, who had 14 rebounds but was limited to just 13 points, seven points below his season average. Darko Milicic led the Wolves with a career-high 25 points.
The Warriors started the game slowly. They scored the first basket of the game, but that was their only lead in the first quarter. They shot an abysmal 31.6 percent over the first 12 minutes as Ellis, David Lee and Dorell Wright went a combined 2 for 11.
Minnesota, meanwhile, shot a robust 57.9 percent to forge a 25-17 lead, Milicic hitting 4 of 5 shots and Michael Beasley 4 of 6.
The Timberwolves continued to have their way much of the second quarter as well. When guard Jonny Flynn made his first shot of the season after returning from offseason left hip surgery, Minnesota had a 45-34 lead with 6:19 to go in the first half.
But trailing 47-36, the Warriors finally found their groove with 11 unanswered points. Wright capped the surge with a put-back dunk and two free throws to give Golden State a 48-47 lead with 2:41 to go in the first half.
Minnesota opened up a 51-48 advantage, but Wright buried a 3-pointer to tie it, then Ellis canned a 3-pointer from the corner with 1.6 seconds left to give the Warriors a 54-51 edge heading into intermission.
Golden State opened as much as a five-point lead in the third quarter when Ellis hit back-to-back shots, including a 3-pointer with 5:46 to go in the period for a 72-67 lead. Williams scored 10 points in the period, hitting 4 of 5 shots including both of his 3-point attempts.
— Story by Carl Steward, The Oakland Tribune
