Timberwolves 108, Spurs 95
SAN ANTONIO -- Derrick Williams scored 21 points to lead the Minnesota Timberwolves to a 108-95 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday night at AT&T Center.
Williams made 7 of 15 field goal attempts and had six rebounds and four assists in the season finale.
Minnesota (31-51) finished the season with its best record since Kevin Garnett was traded in 2007. Despite the improvement, the Timberwolves missed the playoffs for the ninth straight season.
Chase Budinger scored 15 points and Ricky Rubio, who had his first triple-double the last time he faced the Spurs, scored 12.
Greg Stiemsma added 12, and Dante Cunningham and J.J. Barea both had 10 as Minnesota, the worst 3-point shooting team in the league, went 12 for 29 from behind the arc. Budinger and Rubio each hit three 3-pointers.
The Wolves outscored the Spurs 52-34 in the second half.
The Timberwolves were up by 16 points in the fourth quarter when Budinger got an assist from Barea and nailed a 3-pointer with two minutes left, making it 108-92.
The loss kept the Spurs reeling as the playoffs are about to begin.
San Antonio (58-24) headed into the game locked into the second seed in the Western Conference playoffs.
Rather than rest his top players, coach Gregg Popovich opted to get them repetitions, as he saw his team let the top seed get away by losing seven of the last 10 games.
Manu Ginobili, out nine games with a strained right hamstring, and Tony Parker, who has played in 12 of the last 24 games, returned to the court to join Tim Duncan for the first time since a March 31 loss to the Miami Heat.
Duncan had 17 points and 14 rebounds to lead the Spurs.
Gary Neal added 17 points, Parker 15 and DeJuan Blair 10. San Antonio has now lost three in a row for the first time since April 2011.
Parker finished the second quarter with the Spurs last 11 points, putting them up 61-56 at halftime. He scored all of his points and added six assists in the first half.
NOTES: Tracy McGrady, the seven-time All-Star forward who has spent the past year playing in China, was signed by the Spurs for the playoffs. McGrady fills the position vacated by Stephen Jackson, who was waived Friday. McGrady was in street clothes Wednesday alongside Tiago Splitter and Boris Diaw. ...
The Spurs' fan appreciation night included a host of activities, giveaways and recognition throughout the game. Forward Matt Bonner addressed the fans before tipoff, thanking them for their support. ... San Antonio finished short of a 60-win season, but the Spurs have the best winning percentage of any NBA team in the last 16 years. They are 888-376 (.703) during that time. ... Minnesota coach Rick Adelman, who recently notched his 1,000th win as a coach, remains undecided about whether to continue coaching the Timberwolves. His wife has been battling health problems, and he may quit to assist her. He told the St. Paul Pioneer Press recently that his decision will come in "a couple of weeks." ... A moment of silence was held before the game, honoring the victims of the Boston Marathon tragedy.
