Warriors take Wolves' errors, turn them into points

Golden State is the NBA's best in the transition game, and whenever Minnesota made a mistake, the Warriors capitalized.

By KENT YOUNGBLOOD, Star Tribune

Last update: January 21, 2008 - 1:02 AM

Decisions, decisions ...

Timberwolves coach Randy Wittman talked to his team about it Tuesday night before the game against Golden State. The subject came up a few times during the game, too.

His message: You can't make bad decisions with the basketball against a team that does such a good job of turning mistakes into points.

Wittman's guys didn't listen. Or, at least, they didn't convert the words they heard into deeds. In a 105-98 loss to the Warriors the Wolves battled on the boards, fought their way to the line and -- time after time -- pushed themselves back into contention.

Only to have a few bad decisions derail them.

And so Wittman found himself talking about exactly the same thing after the game.

"They're the No. 1 team at turning turnovers into points, and we give 'em 31 points off our turnovers," he said. "The decisions we made with the ball? You can't do that."

And yet the Wolves did.

As a result, every time the Wolves found themselves back in the game, they found a way to hand the momentum back.

"There were too many turnovers, and unforced turnovers, too," said Antoine Walker, who came off the bench to hit on four of seven three-pointers for a game-high 26 points. "You can't beat a team that way."

Al Jefferson had yet another double-double (18 points and 14 rebounds) -- as did Walker with his 26 points and 10 boards -- and the Wolves had five players in double figures.

But Minnesota couldn't figure out a way to slow the Golden State backcourt of Baron Davis (22 points, nine assists) and Monta Ellis (17, four).

At least when it mattered.

For example, after Ellis' 12 first-quarter points gave Golden State a 28-24 first-quarter lead, the Wolves opened the second by forging a tie -- on Walkers's three-pointer -- and then a three-point lead on Ryan Gomes' three-point play, only to have Golden State embark on a 16-4 run that began with Rashad McCants' offensive foul.

Or at the end of the third quarter, after the Wolves had cut a 14-point lead to 10, the Wolves let the Warriors end the quarter on a 7-0 run in which Davis hit a three-pointer, then stole McCants' in-bounds pass and fed it to Matt Barnes at the buzzer.

Another example? Down 17 to start the fourth, the Wolves clamped down defensively and fought back with Walker -- who scored 13 in the fourth -- leading the way. Gerald Green hit a three-pointer to cut the Warriors' lead to 12. Another three by Walker made it eight, then Marko Jaric drove the lane to make it six. Moments later McCants scored four in a row -- the last two on free throws -- and the Wolves were within 96-92 with 3:26 left.

But then the Wolves had three turnovers in their next four possessions and suddenly the Warriors' lead was back to double digits. That wass even more frustrating for the Wolves than they found the officiating; both McCants and Wittman were called for technicals.

"Twenty turnovers, 31 points, against an up-tempo team?" Gomes asked. "They rely on those points, and it was a bonus for them tonight. That's where the game was won."

And lost.

"Once we got into the half-court, it wasn't bad," Wittman said. "But obviously [fast-break points] is their strength, and we fed into that."

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