By Paul Levine Nov 5, 2009, 8:12 GMT
Los Angeles - The weary Boston Celtics were dragging their tired legs most of the game, but found the energy at the end to pull themselves over the finish line.
Kevin Garnett had 12 points with 11 rebounds and made a huge defensive play in the closing seconds, helping the Celtics stay undefeated with a gutsy 92-90 road victory over the feisty Timberwolves on Wednesday night.
'We were playing back-to-back games, but no excuses,' said Garnett, who starred 12 seasons for the Timberwolves before being traded in 2006. 'This is when you have to dig down deep and I thought we did a good job of that.'
Rajon Rondo scored 14 of his 18 points in the third quarter for the Celtics (6-0), who along with the Denver Nuggets (5-0) remain the NBA's only unblemished teams.
The Celtics trailed by eight at halftime, and narrowed it to three entering the final frame. They went ahead 91-88 with just under three minutes left as Garnett hit Rondo and Perkins for layups.
After Boston's Kendrick Perkins made one-of-two free throws, Ukrainian seven-footer Oleksiy Pecherov hit a jumper to pull the T-Wolves within 92-90.
Looking to tie, Corey Brewer drove the left side with 10 seconds left, but Garnett forced a jump ball. He controlled the tip and sent the ball into the backcourt, where Rondo batted it out of bounds, shaving valuable time off the clock.
'Doc told me hit the ball long in the air with some loft on it, because it takes a lot of time off,' said Garnett, referring to Celtics coach Doc Rivers. 'I did a good job of it.'
With three seconds left, Al Jefferson got the inbounds pass deep on the left side, but his potential game-winning three-point jumper was blocked by Perkins as time expired.
Pecherov poured in a career-high 24 points, Jefferson added 18, but went scoreless in the final frame for Minnesota (1-4) which led throughout the first three quarters.
'We played hard, we played with a lot of energy,' Pecherov said. 'We just have to learn how to finish these games.'
Elsewhere: Denver Nuggets 122, New Jersey Nets 94 Rookie Ty Lawson had 23 points on 9-of-10 shooting, Carmelo Anthony added 22, and the undefeated Nuggets (5-0) outscored the Nets 44-26 in the third-quarter to keep New Jersey winless.
Chris Douglas-Roberts scored 19 points for the Nets (0-5), matching the worst start in franchise history set in 1996-97.
LA Lakers 103, Houston Rockets 102 (OT) Kobe Bryant scored 41 points, Andrew Bynum added 17 with 17 rebounds and the defending NBA Champion Lakers (4-1) won their second overtime road game in as many nights.
Lakers Ron Artest and Rockets Trevor Ariza fought to a draw, each scoring 15 points in their first meeting since exchanging teams in July as free agents.
Carl Landry led Houston (3-2) with 20 points, while Argentine Luis Scola had 16 and 13 rebounds before fouling out in the extra session.
Orlando Magic 122, Phoenix Suns 100 Dwight Howard scored 25 points, Ryan Anderson had 20 with 10 rebounds as the Magic routed the previously unbeaten Suns.
Amare Stoudemire topped visiting Phoenix (4-1) with 25 points and 14 rebounds.
Miami Heat 93, Washington Wizards 89 Dwyane Wade pumped in 40 points, including a go-ahead jumper with 25 seconds left, carrying the visiting Heat to its fourth win in five games this season.
Gilbert Arenas led Washington (2-3) with 32 points.
New Orleans Hornets 114, Dallas Mavericks 107 (OT) Chris Paul scored six of his 39 points in overtime after Peja Stojakovic's three-pointer in closing seconds of regulation tied the game, and the Hornets ended the Mavericks' three-game winning streak.
Jason Terry topped visiting Dallas (3-2) with 35 points.
Indiana Pacers 101, New York Knicks 89 Danny Granger scored 21 points before fouling out late in the game, Dahntay Jones had 19 with 12 rebounds, and the visiting Pacers (1-3) posted their first win of the season.
Al Harrington netted 22 points, while David Lee had 19 with 18 rebounds for New York (1-4), outscored 28-15 in the final stanza.
Toronto Raptors 110, Detroit Pistons 99 Chris Bosh scored 25 points, and Italy's Andrea Bargnani had 22 with 12 rebounds as the host Raptors beat the Pistons for just the second time in the last nine meetings.
Ben Gordon topped Detroit (2-3) with a season-high 30 points..
Atlanta Hawks 113, Sacramento Kings 105 Joe Johnson and Jamal Crawford scored 26 points apiece, as the visiting Hawks rolled to their fourth win in five games.
Kevin Martin topped Sacramento (1-4) with 29 points and 11 rebounds while Jason Thompson contributed 22 points and 12 rebounds.
Golden State Warriors 113, Memphis Grizzlies 105 Monta Ellis collected 24 points with a season-best 12 assists, Anthony Morrow also scored 24, and the Warriors (1-2) overcame an early 13-point deficit for their first victory of the season.
Rudy Gay led visiting Memphis (1-4) with 29 points.
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