MINNEAPOLIS – Vladimir Radmanovic and Maurice Evans combined for 16 points during a 25-2 run in the fourth quarter that rallied the Los Angeles Lakers to a 111-94 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night.
One night after shooting just 6-of-19 from the floor and fouling out for the first time in more than a year in a loss to Chicago, Kobe Bryant scored 24 points on 10-of-17 shooting. But the Lakers trailed by 10 to start the fourth, and coach Phil Jackson sat Bryant for the first 81/2 minutes of the quarter to remarkable success.
Radmanovic hit two 3-pointers and Evans punctuated the spurt against his former team with a dunk that gave the Lakers a 100-91 lead with 4:39 to go.
The Timberwolves, especially Kevin Garnett, were stunned. After shooting 62 percent and playing nearly flawless offensive basketball through three quarters, they were outscored 34-7 in the lowest-scoring fourth quarter in franchise history.
Garnett, who went toe-to-toe with Bryant for the first three quarters, led Minnesota with 22 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists.
AP-ES-12-20-06 2222EST
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