'Wolves Rally Past Vancouver

Stephon Marbury said what has been written about him lately doesn't bother him.

Marbury, criticized locally for shooting too much and passing too little, had 15 points and 13 assists Saturday night as the Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the Vancouver Grizzlies 102-88.

Marbury took just 10 shots from the field, making six, and sparked a key fourth-quarter rally for the Wolves, who swept the four-game season series from Vancouver.

"That's just how the game was," Marbury said of his relatively low shot total. "I'm just trying to win games, doing whatever it takes. I don't pay much attention (to the criticism). When I'm making shots, those same (writers) will be going, 'hip-hop-hooray'."

Kevin Garnett scored 22 points, Sam Mitchell had 18 and Anthony Peeler 17 as the Wolves shot 53.1 percent from the field en route to their second straight victory after losing four in a row.

Shareef Abdur-Rahim tied his season high with 31 points, but was held to nine after halftime as the Grizzlies dropped their seventh straight. It is Vancouver's fourth losing streak of at least seven games this season.

Marbury, who averages 16 shot attempts per game and has looked to score more since Tom Gugliotta went down with a season-ending injury seven weeks ago, scored 3.7 points below his average but also had almost five more assists than his 8.2 average.

"A lot has been written about him lately because he tries a lot of stuff," Minnesota coach Flip Saunders said. "I don't get concerned about him on offense. I harp on him about his defense more than anything."

With Marbury out of the game, Minnesota turned the ball over four times in the first three minutes of the fourth quarter, allowing the Grizzlies to pull to 75-71 with 9:30 to play.

But Marbury re-entered the game and promptly hit a 3-pointer, then set up baskets by Mitchell and Tom Hammonds as part of a 9-0 run that gave the Wolves an 84-71 lead with 5:36 to play.

"To me, he's one of the toughest point guards to defend," Vancouver coach Brian Hill said. "And when you talk to the other point guards in the league, they agree."

Abdur-Rahim singlehandedly kept the Grizzlies in the game in the first quarter, scoring 18 points, including Vancouver's first 14.

Abdur-Rahim had 22 in the first half, but the Wolves built a 51-42 lead late behind eight points from Garnett.

Michael Smith scored eight points in the third quarter to keep the Grizzlies close, but a 3-pointer by Mitchell in the closing seconds sent the Wolves into the fourth quarter with a 71-64 lead.

Notes: Saturday night's victory kept the Wolves perfect at home against the Grizzlies (6-0) in their history. ... Peeler played against his former teammates for the first time since the Fb. 18 trade that sent him to the Wolves. ... Minnesota's Stanley Roberts missed his second straight game with a sprained foot. ... After leading the Grizzlies in scoring 42 times in their first 59 games, Abdur-Rahim has led them just once in eight before Saturday. ...Since the All-Star break, the Wolves are 1-9 against teams with winning records.

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