Ridnour's 3 FTs Give T'wolves OT Win Over Bucks
MILWAUKEE (AP) -- Luke Ridnour hit three free throws with 1 second left in overtime to rally the Minnesota Timberwolves to a 119-118 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday night in the exhibition finale for both teams.
The Bucks led 118-112 with 2:05 left, but the Timberwolves (6-2) hit seven straight free throws to end it. Ridnour finished with 17 points, including going 10 of 10 from the free throw line, and had seven assists against his old team.
Milwaukee's Larry Sanders failed to get a shot off from close range that could have won it as time expired.
Minnesota trailed by 15 points in the first half.
Ridnour hit a 3-pointer with 17 seconds left that sent the game into overtime after Keyon Dooling missed a contested runner at the buzzer for the Bucks (3-5).
Corey Maggette scored all 17 of his points form the free throw line on 20 attempts before fouling out in his Bucks' debut. Maggette, along with Drew Gooden, were the two biggest additions to the Bucks, who made the playoffs for the first time in four years last season but had a glaring lack of offensive firepower after Andrew Bogut's season-ending injury.
Maggette fouled out with 2:48 left in the third quarter, and Gooden and Bogut weren't on the court down the stretch. Bogut, still working his way back from right elbow, wrist and hand injuries suffered in April, scored seven points and had six rebounds in 25 minutes.
Milwaukee failed to grab a rebound late when the Timberwolves missed two 3-point attempts in the closing seconds before Ridnour was fouled by Chris Douglas-Roberts with 1 second left. After hitting all three free throws, he leapt into Kevin Love's arms on the bench.
Timberwolves center Darko Milicic returned from a sore neck, scoring 12 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. He also drew laughs when he dunked a ball in the fourth quarter, hung on the rim drawing a technical, and then fell awkwardly as his teammates laughed at him on the bench.
Milicic's technical was the sixth between the teams in a tightly called game that had 63 fouls and 92 combined free throw, none more important than the final three.
It had all the feel of an exhibition until the end.
At one point during an officials' review, Michael Beasley sat on the scorers' table and chatted with Bucks TV analyst Jon McGlocklin, who asked him about Minnesota's weather.
"I'm already freezing," Beasley quipped after being dealt from Miami in a trade that helped the Heat clear salary cap space to sign LeBron James and Chris Bosh.
Milwaukee was without John Salmons (right knee), Luc Richard Mbah a Moute (right ankle) and Jon Brockman (left ankle), while the Timberwolves were missing Jonny Flynn (left hip), Wesley Johnson (left hamstring), Martell Webster (back spasms) and Sebastian Telfair (heel, right shoulder).
Both teams open their seasons Wednesday. Minnesota hosts Sacramento and Milwaukee plays at New Orleans.
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