Playoff-bound Heat thumps stay-at-home Timberwolves

The records aren't that different, but Miami is preparing to defend its NBA title and Minnesota is getting ready for another season without a postseason.

By Steve Aschburner, Star Tribune

Last update: March 31, 2007 - 12:12 AM

You want to focus on the math, on how a relatively small difference in won-lost records -- Miami 39-33, Minnesota 30-42 -- can mean a world of difference in two teams' status or, as the case may be, plight.

You want to focus on the math, but then you see the method by which Miami beat the Timberwolves 92-77 on Friday night at Target Center.

Miami, the NBA's defending champion, was aggressive, full of energy, cohesive and ready to play. Coach Pat Riley's key players defended, rebounded, did what he asked and held the game on a leash while managing a lead that stretched from start to finish.

Then there were the Wolves, who lacked effort, settled for jump shots and a few times looked as if they couldn't be bothered to thwart or even chase a Miami fast break that put the first serious separation onto the scoreboard.

Minnesota gave up 12 points to the Heat's break in the first half and went into a standstill during an 8-0 flurry midway through the first quarter that made it 21-10.

From there, all the Wolves did was play catch-up, get close, fall back and hope.

So whatever accounted for the gap of eight games between these teams through 71 games, they were night and day in No. 72. And it had way more to do with approach than talent or experience.

"Energy was not there at the start," coach Randy Wittman said. "You can't come out lackadaisical at the start of games."

Miami got off early when the Wolves' defensive attention on Shaquille O'Neal gave its shooters looks that they liked. But the game was transformed in a span of 67 seconds, from Ricky Davis' turnover at 4 minutes, 46 seconds of the first quarter to Jason Williams' driving layup at 3:39. In between, Williams triggered layups by Eddie Jones and James Posey, and a dunk by Posey, at a pace that made the Wolves look less involved than normal.

"It explains our season right there," rookie Randy Foye said. "It was too easy. We watched film, and we saw him basically beat our whole team from end to end and get ... four layups. That just explains everything."

Williams had 15 points and 10 assists, helping all five starters reach double figures. Wolves forward Kevin Garnett finished with 22 points and 20 rebounds, big stats on a team that scored 77 while shooting 37 percent. "We kept trying to find ways to get back into the game," he said. "The deficit was just too big. Every time we made a run, they made a run."

The Heat led by as many as 17 points in the second quarter, by as few as four in the third, yet never was in danger.

Eager to keep pressure on at 56-50, the Wolves instead came up empty on their next four possessions. And after the fourth, a blown fast break, Williams fired the ball to O'Neal, who barely had budged from the far end and slammed it down. Minnesota's most extended push in the fourth quarter only got it within 76-66 with 7:59 left. Then it missed five consecutive shots, highlighted by this sequence: missed three-pointer by Rashad McCants, missed three by Foye, rebound by Garnett, ball back to Foye, pass to Marko Jaric ... and ball right through Jaric's hands out of bounds.

Shooting was a problem all game; the Wolves made only 14 of 40 shots in the first half and eight of 24 in the last quarter. In the third, they shot 45 percent and outscored Miami 22-17.

Riley gave credit to his defense. "It is nice when guys respond to the beck-and-call, the coaching beg," he said. "They didn't get a lot of layups, which we had been giving up over the last 10 games."

Wittman, though, felt his team barely tested that defense by not sharing the ball. "Everything was an exhaustion of whoever caught it," he said. " 'I'm going to exhaust my play first.' "

The Wolves, this season, have exhausted plenty.

Steve Aschburner • saschburner@startribune.com

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