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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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 GAME FLOW
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- It happened suddenly, without warning: a
dominating six minutes that would have made Michael Jordan proud.
|  | | Shaquille O'Neal did it all Wednesday: 37 points, 16 rebounds and four blocks. |
Shaquille O'Neal scored 18 of his 37 points in the first half of the second quarter Wednesday night, leading the Los Angeles Lakers
to a 114-81 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
O'Neal made seven of eight field goal attempts and four of five
foul shots as the Lakers outscored the Timberwolves 20-7 to begin
the second period for a 44-25 lead with 6:03 left before halftime.
O'Neal scored the final 18 points of the spurt, giving him 25 at
that juncture.
"My guys were looking for me, I was hitting the (free)
throws," O'Neal said. "Everything was going pretty well. If they
had looked for me a little more in the second half, I would have
had 60.
"We're getting back on track. Simple math for us -- get it into
me, watch me work. If they double, I kick it out."
O'Neal, who made 11 of 16 shots and a surprising 15 of 20 free
throws, also finished with 16 rebounds, three assists and four
blocked shots before leaving the game with 5:19 remaining.
"I'm changing my name to The Big Havlicek because of my
free-throw ability," O'Neal said with a smile, referring to former
Boston Celtics star John Havlicek.
"When Shaq is playing at the level he was playing at tonight,
he dominates the game," said Lakers coach Phil Jackson, who
watched Jordan have plenty of dominating nights during the 1990s,
when the Chicago Bulls won six NBA titles.
"We had no answers early on for Shaq," said Timberwolves coach
Flip Saunders, whose team lost for just the third time in 12 games.
"He just totally dominated us. We just never got it going, and we
were definitely outmanned at the center spot.
"Their defense was great. We didn't react to it. They really
pressured us."
The Lakers extended a 13-point halftime lead to 78-53 late in
the third quarter, and the Timberwolves wound up suffering their
most one-sided loss of the season.
Kobe Bryant, who sat out the fourth quarter, added 24 points for
the Lakers, who won their third straight but are just 6-6 since
their 16-game winning streak.
"We're trying to get it back together," said Brian Shaw, who came off the bench to get eight points, seven assists and five rebounds in 21 minutes for the Lakers. "We went through a 2½-week
stretch where we couldn't do anything right."
They did a lot right against the Timberwolves, making 48 percent
of their shots while holding Minnesota to 34 percent, and winning
the rebounding battle 54-39.
Kevin Garnett had 29 points and six rebounds and Tom Hammonds
added a season-high 12 points for the Timberwolves.
"The only one who had it going for them was The Big Ticket,"
O'Neal said, referring to Garnett.
"Shaq's the man, doing his thing," Garnett said. "Shaq's
probably the best player in the NBA, you've got to recognize that.
There ain't nothing you can do if Shaq has 40 or 50. You've got to
compare him to Wilt (Chamberlain) and (Kareem) Abdul-Jabbar.
"If he makes free throws, he's hands-down the best player in
the NBA, if he isn't already."
The Lakers went ahead for good by outscoring Minnesota 11-2 for
a 19-10 lead.
The Timberwolves made just 8 of 23 shots in the first period,
which ended with Los Angeles leading 24-18, and missed their first
six of the second while the Lakers went on a 13-1 run.
Minnesota scored the final five points of the first half to cut
the Lakers' lead to 54-41. O'Neal wound up with 20 points in the
second period -- the most by a Los Angeles player in a quarter this
season.
Game notes
Minnesota's Terrell Brandon, averaging 16.8 points and 8.8
assists, missed his fifth straight game due to a sprained left
ankle. ... The Lakers (37-11) enter the All-Star break having
played more home games (27) and fewer road games (21) than anyone
in the NBA except Denver. They play their next six games on the
road, starting in Chicago next Tuesday night, and don't play at
home again until Feb. 25 against Boston. ... The Timberwolves
(27-19), who have a 20-6 record since Dec. 18, play at Phoenix on
Thursday night in their final game before the All-Star break. After
that, they play seven of their next nine games at home. ... The
Lakers have won 12 of their past 13 games against Minnesota and
have an overall record of 34-8 against the Timberwolves, who began
play as an expansion team in the 1989-90 season.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Minnesota Clubhouse
LA Lakers Clubhouse
RECAPS
Indiana 113
Boston 104
Philadelphia 92
New Jersey 90
Atlanta 116
Houston 100
Charlotte 103
Cleveland 95
Detroit 115
Toronto 108
Miami 115
Golden State 100
Orlando 107
Washington 96
New York 109
Milwaukee 103
Seattle 117
Dallas 106
San Antonio 106
Denver 97
Utah 113
Chicago 86
Portland 107
LA Clippers 100
LA Lakers 114
Minnesota 81
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