Timberwolves cool off Heat

Kevin Garnett added 23 points and pulled down 11 rebounds for Minnesota, which won for the second straight game. Marcus Banks, Mark Blount and Marko Jaric all donated 12 points in the victory.

Dwyane Wade dropped in 35 points and had eight assists for the Heat, who saw a five-game winning streak come to a halt. Alonzo Mourning had a double-double with 21 points and 12 boards while Shaquille O’Neal did not play for Miami as he sat out with a sore right thumb.

Trailing by seven points at halftime, Minnesota ended the third frame on a 12-2 run, and outscored the Heat 32-13 in the period to take a 82-70 lead into the final quarter.

The T’Wolves scored five straight points to open the fourth quarter for an 87-70 advantage.

Wade and the Heat made things interesting after he drained back-to-back three- pointers to pull the Heat within five points at 90-85 with 2:55 remaining. His trey’s capped a 15-3 run.

A 6-0 dash later in the quarter by the Heat made it a two-point game at 98-96 with 34 seconds on the clock. Mourning started things with a three-point play while Wade hit three from the line after being fouled on an attempt from beyond the arc.

After Blount missed a 15-foot jumper, Gary Payton pulled down the rebound and pushed the ball up court to Wade, who drove hard to the net, but his layup attempt rolled off the rim. Garnett grabbed the loose ball and sealed things with two from the line.

"They were on fire tonight," said Heat head coach Pat Riley. "This is one of the best shooting teams in the league. Tonight, they showed it."

The Heat ended the opening quarter on an 8-2 run to take a 30-22 lead into the second stanza. Wade and Antoine Walker each netted four points during the stretch.

Minnesota opened the second quarter with a 15-3 surge to take a 37-33 lead. Jaric donated six points during the spurt while Davis had four. The Timberwolves outscored Miami 28-27 in the quarter, but still trailed 57-50 at halftime.

Wade had 22 points while Mourning had 11 at the break for the Heat.

Game Notes

Minnesota is 20-14 at the Target Center this season and has won five of its last six at home...Minnesota shot 48.7 percent from the field for the game...Miami suffered just its second loss in the last 17 games overall...The Heat have lost six straight and eight of their last nine at Minnesota...Walker finished with 18 points.