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Timberwolves vs. Hornets: Minnesota pulls away for 109-93 win

2012-12-15T03:14:29Z

The Minnesota Timberwolves broke open a game that was tied at halftime in the second half for a 109-93 win over the New Orleans Hornets Friday.

Kevin Love struggled, shooting just 4-for-18 from the field, but Nikola Pekovic picked up the slack. Pekovic scored 31 points on 14-for-18 shooting and grabbed five rebounds. Despite Love's tough shooting night, the Timberwolves still shot 54 percent for the game.

Andrei Kirilenko scored 21 points and had 11 rebounds. Love finished with 14 points, Luke Ridnour and Alexey Shved scored 13 each and J.J. Barea scored 10 points off the bench. It was the third straight win for the Timberwolves.

The Hornets were led by rookie Austin Rivers, who scored 22 points. He had 19 of those in the first half. Point guard Greivis Vasquez had 13 points, 15 assists and four rebounds. New Orleans has now lost six straight games.

Timberwolves vs. Hornets: Minnesota tied 50-50 on road with New Orleans at half

2012-12-15T02:12:19Z

The Minnesota Timberwolves and New Orleans Hornets are tied 50-50 at halftime Friday.

Nikola Pekovic has scored 12 points on 6-for-8 shooting and grabbed four rebounds to lead the Timberwolves.

The Timberwolves jumped out to a 28-23 lead in the first quarter, but the Hornets responded with a good second quarter to tie it before halftime. The Hornets took a 50-48 lead on a basket by Austin Rivers with 32 seconds remaining in the half, but Andrei Kirilenko tied it before the half ended.

Kirilenko has eight points, five rebounds and two assists and Minnesota is shooting 51 percent in the half despite the struggles of star Kevin Love. Love has eight points, but he's made just 2-for-11 shots and he only has one rebound in the half.

Rivers had 19 first half points for the Hornets and Ryan Anderson and Robin Lopez each have eight. Rookie Anthony Davis has scored seven off the bench.

2012 NBA schedule: Timberwolves pull away for 109-93 win over Hornets

2012-12-15T02:06:13Z

The Minnesota Timberwolves play won the first of a weekend back-to-back, beating the Hornets 109-93 Friday.

The Minnesota Timberwolves have won two straight games and will look to improve their streak and their position in the Western Conference with games this weekend against the New Orleans Hornets and Dallas Mavericks.

The Wolves play the Hornets in New Orleans. Minnesota has been solid on the road this season with a 4-6 record and New Orleans at 5-16 has been one of the worst teams in the league. It will be the first game between the two teams this season.

On Saturday, the Wolves host the Mavs, who they beat earlier in the season. Minnesota leads Dallas by a half game in the Western Conference standings.

Friday, Dec. 14 - Minnesota Timberwolves at New Orleans Hornets, 7 p.m. CT, Fox Sports Northwest

Saturday, Dec. 15 - Dallas Mavericks at Minnesota Timberwolves, 7 p.m. CT, Fox Sports Northwest

SI.com has the full NBA schedule. Here are the games for Friday-Sunday:

Friday , Dec. 14	Away Team	Home Team	TV
7:00 PM	Mavericks	Raptors	FSW
7:00 PM	Lakers	Wizards	TWC
7:00 PM	76ers	Pacers	CSN
7:00 PM	Warriors	Magic	GS2
7:30 PM	Pistons	Nets	FxD
7:30 PM	Bucks	Cavaliers	FWi
8:00 PM	Celtics	Rockets	ESP
8:00 PM	Kings	Thunder	CSS
8:00 PM	Timberwolves	Hornets	FNo
9:00 PM	Jazz	Suns	RT
10:30 PM	Grizzlies	Nuggets	ESP

Saturday , Dec. 15	Away Team	Home Team	TV
7:00 PM	Warriors	Hawks	GS2
7:30 PM	Cavaliers	Knicks	FxO
7:30 PM	Pacers	Pistons	FxI
7:30 PM	Wizards	Heat	WA2
7:30 PM	Magic	Bobcats	FxF
8:00 PM	Mavericks	Timberwolves	FSW
8:00 PM	Nets	Bulls	YES
8:30 PM	Clippers	Bucks	PRI
8:30 PM	Celtics	Spurs	CNE
9:00 PM	Grizzlies	Jazz	SSN

Sunday , Dec. 16	Away Team	Home Team	TV
1:00 PM	Rockets	Raptors
6:00 PM	Lakers	76ers	TWC
6:00 PM	Nuggets	Kings	AL2
9:00 PM	Hornets	Trail Blazers	FSN

Minnesota Stars offseason: Trying to find a way back to the Finals

2012-12-05T23:05:40Z

The Minnesota Stars have begun making off-season moves, as the team looks to make it back to the league finals in 2013 for what would be the third time in three years.

The Minnesota Stars had 18 players with contract options for 2013 - and 13 of those 18 are coming back in 2013.

Key among the returning players are the team's excellent starting goalkeeper, Matt Van Oekel, and three-quarters of the team's first-choice back four - center back Connor Tobin and fullbacks Justin Davis and Brian Kallman. Further forward, the team also retained the services of defensive midfielder Kentaro Takada, who most often played a holding role in front of the back four, and winger Miguel Ibarra, who spent much of the year bombing up and down the right wing, creating chances with his speed.

While nothing is officially signed, defender / assistant coach / jersey maker / jack of all trades Kevin Friedland is also likely to return in 2013. Friedland's contract was up at the end of 2012, but with all of his duties with the team, one suspects that he could more or less write his own ticket. He said, via text, that "right now the plan is to be back," so barring something out of the ordinary, he will also return.

Also returning are defender Ernest Tchoupe, midfielders Michael Reed, Edi Buro, and Kevin Venegas, and forwards Nate Polak and Travis Wall. Five players - defenders Evan Sassano and Gino Mauro, and midfielders Shawn Chin, Fuad Ibrahim, and Andy Lorei - had their options declined, and will not be returning.

As for the free agents, the Stars lost their first free-agent of the off-season when midfielder Neil Hlavaty signed with FC Edmonton for, in his words, "a change in my career." Hlavaty had held down his role in central midfield for the past three years with the club, but moved onto Edmonton for a chance in scenery and a chance to perhaps take the next step.

These, then, are the certainties. The more important questions about the Stars have to do with free agents - with two questions in particular coming to mind.

1. Will center back, NASL first-team All-Star, and team captain Kyle Altman return?

Altman has taken deferrals from medical school to play soccer, but has been rumored to be indecisive about returning for another season in 2013 rather than moving on. According to Brian Quarstad at Inside Minnesota Soccer, if Altman was to choose to play again next season, he'd have to reapply to school and re-take his entrance exams, making this offseason a difficult choice.

2. Who will play up front for the Stars?

Amani Walker, the team's leading scorer in 2012 but a free agent, has had discussions with head coach Manny Lagos and the Stars front office, but is still weighing his options, and doesn't expect to make any concrete decisions, possibly until the new year. With the MLS Cup final this weekend, the MLS offseason really hasn't got going yet, and Walker will be hoping to get a chance to move up to the first division if possible and continue to try to realize his huge potential.

Should that chance not come, though, Walker says he's certainly open to returning. He told me that he likes it in Minnesota - "being from California, I never thought I'd say that, but I like Minnesota" - and that returning to the Stars is certainly a possibility. As of now, though, he plans to keep his options open.

In addition to Walker, forwards Martin Nunez and Simone Bracalello (five goals apiece) and Devin Del Do (two goals) are also free agents. As of now, the team has only two forwards - and both are very short on experience. Polak was a late-season signing out of Hastings College, and was used mostly as a substitute to bring some energy on the field at the end of games, while Wall played all of 83 minutes for the Stars in 2012.

Vikings At Packers: Green Bay (Likely) Seals It

2012-12-02T20:42:17Z

If you're a fan of the Minnesota Vikings, it's getting harder and harder to defend having Christian Ponder continue to start at quarterback.

On the final play of the third quarter, after yet another big run by Adrian Peterson, Ponder threw his second interception of the game, and the second to Morgan Burnett, to stop another Minnesota scoring threat. The Packers took over on that play, and held the ball for exactly eleven minutes, eating up the majority of the fourth quarter.

The Packers played it safe deep in Minnesota territory, settling for a field goal try by Mason Crosby from 31 yards out. Crosby has been shaky over the past few weeks, but Crosby drilled the kick to make the score 23-14. The Packer drive spanned 18 plays and 73 yards.

That leaves just four minutes of football at Lambeau Field, and the Vikings needing two scores in order to pull out a victory. With the way the Vikings' offense has looked so far this afternoon, it would appear that the odds of such a thing happening are relatively slim.

Vikings At Packers: James Starks Gives Green Bay Lead

2012-12-02T20:14:37Z

The Minnesota Vikings managed to force a turnover against the Green Bay Packers, but couldn't take advantage of it, and as a result gave Green Bay the ability to take the lead once again.

After rookie safety Harrison Smith recorded his second interception of the season on a deep throw by Aaron Rodgers, the Vikings started out at the Green Bay 6-yard line. Unfortunately, they went three-and-out once again, and the Packers started the ensuing drive at midfield.

The Packers wasted little time getting to the end zone after that, as they took just four plays to move 51 yards. The drive concluded with a 22-yard touchdown run by James Starks to make the score 20-14. The run by Starks was just Green Bay's third rushing touchdown of the season.

With 2:12 remaining in the third quarter at Lambeau Field, the Minnesota Vikings now trail the Green Bay Packers by a score of 20-14.

Vikings At Packers: Green Bay Gets Another Three

2012-12-02T19:59:28Z

It's been a wild start to the third quarter at Lambeau Field, but the Minnesota Vikings still lead the Green Bay Packers by a score of 14-13.

The quarter started with Green Bay kicker Mason Crosby booting the ball out of bounds, giving the Vikings the ball at their own 40-yard line. After a big run by Adrian Peterson put the Vikings into the Green Bay red zone, the Vikings found themselves with 2nd-and-6 from the Green Bay 8-yard line. Christian Ponder rolled out to his right, towards the sideline, and tried to force one in to Michael Jenkins. Unfortunately, the pass was intercepted by safety Morgan Burnett, and the Vikings squandered a huge opportunity to get momentum on their side.

Green Bay took advantage, moving down to the Minnesota 29-yard line, and it appeared that the Packers would go for it on 4th-and-7. However, after the Vikings called a time out, Mike McCarthy sent Crosby out there after all. Crosby, who missed one well to the right from 53 yards out to close out the first half of play, hit one from 46, and the Packers cut the Minnesota lead to one point at 14-13.

Peterson now has 178 yards on 15 carries, just 22 yards away from the third 200+ yard game of his career, and the first since he set the NFL single-game rushing record in his rookie year of 2007.

With 7:47 left in the third quarter at Lambeau, the Minnesota Vikings lead the Green Bay Packers by a score of 14-13.

Vikings At Packers: Adrian Peterson Is Not Human

2012-12-02T19:11:10Z

The Minnesota Vikings have taken the lead against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field, and they got it in the way we've become accustomed to seeing. . .on the legs of Adrian Peterson.

After a punt on Green Bay's latest possession, the Vikings took over on their own 8-yard line. After a Christian Ponder scramble on first down made it second-and-1, Adrian Peterson was stopped for no gain on second down.

On third down, Peterson took a handoff around the right side and broke numerous Green Bay tackles, eventually turning on the speed and blasting down the right sideline for an 82-yard touchdown run. My words can't do it justice. . .you're going to have to see the highlights. The Blair Walsh extra point made it 14-10 in favor of Minnesota, who has a lead over the Packers for the first time since. . .well, it's been a really, really long time.

The run by Peterson gives him 126 yards on 13 carries on the afternoon. This is Peterson's sixth consecutive game with over 100 yards, giving him sole possession of the Vikings' franchise record. He came into this game tied with Robert Smith in that category.

With 3:34 remaining in the first half at Lambeau Field, the Vikings lead the Packers by a score of 14-10.