Notebook: Timberwolves 86, Kings 84

Posted Wednesday February 8, 2012 12:26AM

By Phil Miller, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: Nikola Pekovic scored 23 points and added 10 rebounds Tuesday, and Michael Beasley added 17 points off the bench, helping the Timberwolves survive without suspended All-Star Kevin Love for an 86-84 victory over the Kings in Minneapolis. Marcus Thornton scored 22 points to help Sacramento rally from a 15-point deficit, but Donte Green missed a 3-point shot as the buzzer sounded that would have extended the Kings' winning streak to four games.

Instead, it's the Timberwolves, above .500 for the first time at 13-12, who are enjoying a streak, now three straight wins and six in their last eight games, despite playing without Love. The All-Star forward, who ranks fourth in the league in scoring (25.0 points per game) and second in rebounding (13.7) was suspended Monday for stepping on Rockets forward Luis Scola's face during Saturday's victory.

Derrick Williams started in Love's place and scored 14 points, one off his career high, including a tie-breaking 3-pointer with 56.8 seconds to play. Ricky Rubio helped the Wolves get off to a quick start, piling up eight assists as the Wolves took a 31-16 lead. Rubio matched his career high of 14 assists for the game. But the Kings, who rallied from 19 points down to beat New Orleans on Monday, chipped away at Minnesota's lead. Ultimately, however, they could not overcome a 37.8 percent shooting night, including DeMarcus Cousins' 3-for-13 effort.

QUOTABLE: "Great shot Rook!"
-- Love, via Twitter (@kevinlove), after rookie Derrick Williams broke an 82-82 tie by nailing a 3-pointer from the right corner with 56.8 seconds left. Love was at home watching the game on TV while serving his two-game suspension

THE STAT: 4:00 -- First-quarter minutes played by Cousins before sitting down with two fouls and an 0-for-3 start to the night. The poor start visibly frustrated Cousins, who never got into an offensive rhythm and followed up Monday's 28-point performance in New Orleans with only 10 points against the Wolves.

TURNING POINT: Pekovic watched video of Cousins' 28-point Monday-night performance against New Orleans before Tuesday's game, and told himself to set a physical tone immediately against the mercurial Kings center. When he did so, Cousins answered back, and picked up quick fouls: two of them in the first four minutes, another before halftime, five for the game. Cousins spent much of the game shaking his head and complaining to the officials, and thus distracted, managed to miss 10 of the 13 shots he took from the floor. Not until the game's final two minutes, when Cousins twice drew shooting fouls against Pekovic, did Cousins, who finished with only 10 points, appear confident against the Wolves' big man.

QUOTABLE II: "He's going to want to be a point guard now. All those big guys want to handle the ball."
-- Wolves coach Rick Adelman, on Pekovic's steal and length-of-the-floor fast break for a layup

HOT: Jimmer Fredette scored 13 points on 5-for-8 shooting, but all five baskets -- three 3-pointers, a 20-foot jumper and a fast-break layup -- came in a 5:09 span of the fourth quarter, the sort of instant offense that made Fredette famous at BYU. The Kings' rookie guard also contributed three assists and two steals in 17 total minutes.

NOT: Sacramento reserve forward Donte Greene saw action for the first time in four games, but the layoff didn't help his shooting slump. Green was 3-for-8 from the field, and missed a rushed attempt at a game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer. That brings Greene's success rate from the field to 30.0 percent (9-for-30) since Jan. 23, and 1-for-10 from 3-point range.

GOOD MOVE: Derrick Williams had frustrated Adelman with a lack of focus on defense, and his seven-point, 3-for-8 offensive contribution through three quarters had been fairly nondescript. The rookie started the fourth quarter on the bench, and appeared likely to remain there as the Kings slowly fought back from a double-digit deficit. But with 4:13 to play, Adelman inserted Williams into the game again and the rookie took advantage. He got a basket for a layup on the first possession, then got fouled on each of the next two, making a free throw each time. And with the score tied in the final minute, Williams confidently shot an open jumper from the corner, providing the winning points.

BAD MOVE: The Wolves' final possession ended with a Rubio miss, giving Sacramento the ball with 8.5 seconds left. But rather than call timeout, the Kings chose to push the ball up the floor and improvise a play, and the result was a mess -- and a missed opportunity. The Kings quickly fed Cousins on the right baseline, but when he spun toward the lane, Rubio and Williams were there to help Pekovic defend the shot. Cousins chose to pass, but fumbled the ball toward the right corner, where Greene scooped it up and rushed a 3-point shot as the buzzer sounded, a shot that bounced off the front of the rim.

ROOKIE WATCH: Williams made his first start as a pro at his natural power-forward position, and while he didn't provide the offensive presence of Love, he came within one point of his career high, scoring 14 on 5-for-10 shooting, and matched his career-best in rebounds with 14. Even better, his 3-pointer with 56.8 seconds remaining broke a tie game and put the Wolves in front for good.

NOTABLE: The loss snapped Sacramento's three-game winning streak, their first since last March. ... Minnesota's three-game winning streak is its second of the season. The Wolves had not posted a pair of three-game streaks in the same season since 2008-09. ... Love, suspended two games for stepping on Houston forward Luis Scola's face during Saturday's victory over the Rockets, rode a stationary bike during the Timberwolves' shootaround Tuesday morning, watching his teammates practice. Since he cannot be in the arena during the game, Love will not travel with the team to Memphis for Wednesday's game against the Grizzlies. ... Minnesota center Darko Milicic missed his second straight game, this time with a sprained ankle, according to Adelman. ... Wolves second-round pick Malcolm Lee, who has yet to play an NBA game after undergoing left knee surgery in December, has been assigned to Sioux Falls of the NBA Developmental League. Lee is expected to play several games to regain game shape before returning to Minnesota.

UP NEXT: For the Kings, Thursday vs. Oklahoma City, Saturday vs. Phoenix, Tuesday @ Chicago. For the Timberwolves, Wednesday @ Memphis, Friday vs. Dallas, Saturday vs. New York.