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Friday, Mar. 9 7:30pm ET
'Playoff-type' defense keys Heat victory

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MIAMI (AP) – Wally Szczerbiak said the Miami Heat played like piranhas, while they reminded Kevin Garnett of a certain insect.

Anthony Mason
Miami's Anthony Mason (14) scores against a trailing Kevin Garnett.
The comparisons were meant as compliments after Miami held Minnesota without a point for nearly 10 1/2 minutes in the second half Friday for an 86-79 victory that ended the Timberwolves' four-game winning streak.

"You put the ball on the floor, and five guys are on your back," Garnett said. "They're really aggressive. They're like roaches on bread -- you drop some on the floor, and boom, they're on it."

Garnett was shut out over the final 18 1/2 minutes and finished with 13 points, nearly 10 below his average. Minnesota scored just 30 points in the second half against the Heat, who rank second in the NBA in scoring defense.

"They're like piranhas," Szczerbiak said. "When they smell blood, they go after it."

With their top two scorers sidelined by injuries, the Heat know they must rely on defense more than ever to win. They're 1-1 since guard Eddie Jones went on the injured list with a dislocated shoulder. They already were without All-Star center Alonzo Mourning, sidelined all season by a kidney ailment.

"It was the end of the third quarter when we started to understand how we're going to have to play," coach Pat Riley said. "That's relentless and a little frenetic ... exciting, running, making plays, stripping guys and just pushing. It's not a coincidence that at that time they began to miss."

Reggie Slater's basket with 5:27 left in the third period put the Timberwolves ahead 61-54. Miami ran off a season-high 18 consecutive points for a 72-61 lead before Minnesota scored again, on Szczerbiak's 3-pointer with 7:06 left in the game.

"Heat teams are capable of doing that," Miami point guard Tim Hardaway said. "We had everybody scrambling to the ball and played some great one-on-one defense."

Miami's streak included Bruce Bowen's 3-pointer for their first lead, 63-61, in the final minute of the third period.

The Timberwolves committed eight turnovers during their 10-minute, 21-second scoreless stretch. They finished with 16 turnovers and shot 43 percent.

"That's the best defense anyone has played against us this year," Minnesota coach Flip Saunders said. "That was a playoff-type defense."

Anthony Carter, making just his second start of the season, and rookie Eddie House sparked Miami.

"It was beautiful," Hardaway said. "They were scrambling, got their hands on the ball and deflected passes. They gave us a great lift."

Szczerbiak was the only Minnesota player to score during a span of 16 minutes. He finished with 19 points. Anthony Mason led the Heat with 22 points.

Miami trailed by 11 points in the first half, but a dazzling sequence in the final 1:31 cut the margin to 49-45.

First, the smallest player on the court -- Carter -- outmaneuvered the tallest -- Garnett -- for an acrobatic layup. Carter then missed a breakaway layup, but Bowen tipped it in. On the next possession, Carter took an inbound pass with six-tenths of a second left and sank a buzzer-beating 20-footer.

"Instead of being up eight or 10, we're up four," Saunders said. "We lost too much momentum."

Game notes
The two games this season between the teams come four days apart. The second one is Monday. ... Minnesota, which was the final team to visit Miami Arena, played at AmericanAirlines Arena for the first time. ... Minnesota's Terrell Brandon had five assists, increasing his career total to 4,001. ... With Mourning sidelined all season, Miami is last in the NBA in rebounding and blocks. ... Hardaway went 4-for-15 and is 5-for-24 in the past two games.

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RECAPS
Indiana 99
Cleveland 84

Philadelphia 108
Atlanta 103

Boston 104
Washington 72

Miami 86
Minnesota 79

New Jersey 96
New York 83

Detroit 108
Chicago 75

Dallas 102
Golden State 73

Utah 107
Phoenix 95

Toronto 110
Seattle 99

Vancouver 95
Portland 85

San Antonio 93
LA Lakers 89

Sacramento 110
Denver 104


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