Twelve minutes?: Wolves lose six straight, 125-112

Twelve minutes?

That's all Kevin Love played in tonight's 125-112 loss to the Mavericks -- Dallas' 12 consecutive victory, the Wolves' sixth straight loss and their 12th in 13 games -- at Target Center while Ryan Hollins played 26 and Sasha Pavlovic played nearly 21 minutes.

Huh?

Love's 12 minutes were a season low.

He didn't play in the fourth quarter at all.

For a team going nowhere this season -- other than the second most chances in the draft lottery -- what gives?

Kurt Rambis explained it this way:

Translated, Rambis went with Hollins (until he was ejected for a type 2 flagrant foul with3:48 left in the game and then with Darko Milicic in the fourth quarter in search of a longer player who defend Dirk Nowitzki out on the floor and still make him him work defensively inside.

Both Love and Hollins were out of the locker room in a shot tonight.

While Love sat and watched most of the night, Al Jefferson returned from that two-game suspension and eight days away, made his first five shots, six of his first seven and became the first Wolves player to score 30 points in a game this season with a 36-point night that wasn't nearly enough to overcome a 26-to-9 disparity in turnovers.

The Wolves had the 26, of course.

Eight of those 26 came from rookie point guard Jonny Flynn, who matched the eight turnovers with eight assists.

"When you turn the basketball over 26 times for 34 points, you are starting in a hole of minus 24," said Rambis, turning mathematician for the night. "You are just trying to dig yourself out of a hole. It's too big of an obstacle, and that has been a problem for this team all year and it continues to be a problem.

"Until we correct that, it's going to make it very difficult to get wins."

Other bits from tonight:

* Has Bill Laimbeer been giving Hollins lessons in how to annoy?

Hollins seemed to get under his former team's skin all night, from DeShawn Stevenson's first-half technical foul when he colorfully complained to the officials about a Hollins elbow to the face.

He then got tossed from the late after he struck Nowitzki in the face while flailing for the ball.

"Our guys want to win." Rambis said. "They are trying to fight. They are being aggressive. They are trying to attack inside. I like Ryan Hollins aggressiveness. I don't always like his decision making. but I like his aggressiveness. When guys play hard there is a lot of physical contact and tempers are going to flare."

* Rambis was whistled for a delay of game violation for grabbing a ball in play with 1:55 left.

"I probably shouldn't have," Rambis said. "I should have put more pressure on Dirk to save that basketball. I didn't think he could get to it."

* The Wolves led by 10 points early, but the Mavs turned the game with a 19-2 run that ended the first quarter and started the second.

That's the fourth most in that time, behind Dwight Howard's 105, Chris Bosh's 82 and TIm Duncan's 81.

* Corey Brewer was 1 for 7 on threes, but that one in the second quarter was enough to extend his franchise-record streak of consecutive games with a three to 28.

* Damien Wilkins played just 46 seconds.

* Wayne Ellington missed his third consecutive game because of that sprained ankle sustained in practice a week ago Monday. He still is walking stiffly on that ankle and hasn't yet been cleared to return to practice.

* Hollins made his first two shots and extended his streak of consecutive field-goal attempts made to 12, but he missed a 13-footer in the second quarter and fell one shot short of tying the franchise record for consecutive field-goal attempts without a miss.