MINNEAPOLIS — Getting ready to play his fourth road game in five nights, Nicolas Batum said he felt sluggish during warmups Saturday night at Minnesota.
“I was like, ‘Let’s play this game and get out of here,’ " he said. “I was tired."
It was the Timberwolves, though, who looked and played how Batum felt.
Batum and Wesley Matthews each made five 3s and scored 26 points to lead the Portland Trail Blazers over the injury-depleted Timberwolves 102-97.
“I got tired I think when I got 31 here a couple years ago," Batum said, recalling a 31-point performance at Minnesota in 2010 — he had five 3s in that game as well.
“I was tired," he said.
Imagine if he had actually felt energized.
The Blazers tied a franchise record with 16 3-pointers and withstood a fourth-quarter rally by the Timberwolves to win for the 10th time in 13 games and finish their four-game road trip with a 3-1 record.
“If you shoot the 3 that well, you should probably win by more than five," Portland coach Terry Stotts said.
Nikola Pekovic led the Wolves with 21 points but left the game in the third quarter because of a left hip strain. Only hours earlier, Minnesota learned it lost star forward Kevin Love to a broken right hand for the second time this season when an MRI confirmed the injury.
The banged-up Timberwolves — who dressed only 10 players — also played without point guard Ricky Rubio, who sat out with back spasms.
Afterward, coach Rick Adelman bemoaned his team’s flat play in the first three quarters before suddenly coming to life in the end.
“The league doesn’t stop for you, there’s nobody coming over the mountain for us, it’s who we’ve got right now," Adelman said. “And that’s what we have to do, and everybody has to step up."
The Blazers led by as many as 22 before Derrick Williams fueled a 26-8 run with 18 points in the fourth quarter. His two-handed dunk with 1:19 to play cut Portland’s lead to 96-94. Williams rebounded a miss from Damian Lillard on the ensuing possession, but J.J. Barea threw the ball out of bounds with 50 seconds left.
“I think we all just took it a little personal," Williams said. “We’re down 20 points in the third quarter, and just a lot of guys playing with a lot of heart in the fourth quarter. We’ve just got to play like that all the time."
LaMarcus Aldridge followed the turnover with a 13-footer to make it 98-94. Williams appeared to score on a tip on the next possession, but the officials waved off the score, saying he traveled.
Matthews and Batum each added a pair of free throws to seal the win.
Also on Saturday:
Knicks 114
Magic 106
ORLANDO, Fla. — Carmelo Anthony scored 16 of his 40 points in the fourth quarter, helping New York top Orlando. J.R. Smith added 18 points for New York, and Tyson Chandler had 14 points and 12 rebounds. The Knicks have won two straight overall and four in a row over the Magic, dating to last season.
Pacers 95
Bucks 80
INDIANAPOLIS — Roy Hibbert had 20 points, 15 rebounds and five blocked shots to lead Indiana past Milwaukee. Hibbert grabbed a career-high 11 offensive rebounds as the Pacers won their seventh straight home game.
Celtics 89
Hawks 81
ATLANTA — Rajon Rondo had 14 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists, and Boston rallied to beat Atlanta. Paul Pierce scored 17 of his 26 points in the third quarter as the Celtics erased a 19-point deficit.
Nets 113
Kings 93
NEW YORK — Brook Lopez scored 18 points in 17 minutes to lead six players in double figures, and Brooklyn got a nice effort from the reserves for its third straight victory. One night after needing two overtimes to escape with a 115-113 victory in Washington, the Nets made sure the starters weren’t too taxed.
Rockets 112
Cavaliers 104
CLEVELAND — James Harden scored 29 points, including 16 in the fourth quarter, and Houston beat Cleveland. Jeremy Lin added 20 points for Houston, which has won 11 of its past 14.
Spurs 109
76ers 86
SAN ANTONIO — Tony Parker had 20 points and Manu Ginobili added 19 and San Antonio routed Philadelphia. Tim Duncan added 16 points, Danny Green had 13 and Gary Neal had 12 for San Antonio, which has won 10 straight at home.
Hornets 99
Mavericks 96
DALLAS — Eric Gordon completed a three-point play with 4.7 seconds left in overtime and New Orleans won at Dallas to spoil the Mavericks’ first game this season with Dirk Nowitzki in the starting lineup.
Clippers 115
Warriors 89
LOS ANGELES — Chris Paul had 27 points and nine assists, Blake Griffin added 20 points and the Los Angeles Clippers set a franchise record with their 12th straight home victory.
Nuggets 110
Jazz 91
DENVER — Danilo Gallinari scored 26 points and Denver rebounded from a rare home loss to beat Utah.
