• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Lewis helps Sonics rally past Timberwolves

Mar 24, 2007 - 6:28 AM SEATTLE (Ticker) -- Rashard Lewis showed great timing for the Seattle SuperSonics.

Lewis scored 13 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter and Chris Wilcox had 16 and 12 rebounds as the SuperSonics rallied for an 85-82 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Without teammate Ray Allen in the rotation, Lewis connected on 7-of-20 shots, including 3-of-10 from 3-point range, and pulled down six rebounds.

"I knew I had to be more aggressive and try to penetrate and get to the basket," Lewis said. "I maybe forced a couple of shots but I was able to get to the line in the fourth quarter."

Allen missed his second straight game with bone spurs in his left ankle and is considering season-ending surgery.

In the fourth quarter, rookie Craig Smith scored on a jam and Mike James drained a 3-pointer as the Timberwolves created a 75-66 cushion with 4:09 remaining.

Behind Lewis, the SuperSonics stormed back to take their first lead of the game with an impressive 16-2 burst to open an 82-77 with 56 second left.

"We just kept playing (in the fourth quarter)," Lewis said. "The crowd got into in and they even helped us with the momentum. We weren't in good rhythm but we played good defense and that kept us in the game."

Smith's layup made it an one-possession game for Minnesota at 84-82, but teammate Randy Foye misfired on a jumper, and Lewis split a pair of foul shots to seal the win.

"We just had to gut out a win and that's what we did," Seattle coach Bob Hill said.

Earl Watson had 14 points and seven assists and Damien Wilkins scored 12 for Seattle, which shot 36 percent (28-of-77) from the field and scored 16 second-chance points.

Smith netted 19 points off the bench and All-Star Kevin Garnett pulled down a season-best 22 rebounds for the Timberwolves, who are just 1-12 on the road since the All-Star break.

"We just panicked," Minnesota interim coach Randy Wittman said. "We lost our composure a little bit."

"We weren't aggressive," Garnett said. "We've just got to be aggressive with the traps and make things happen."