Minnesota Sports Roundup: T-Wolves lose their fourth straight

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DALLAS - The Minnesota T-Wolves lost their fourth straight game, falling 113-98 in Dallas last night.

Minnesota trailed by ten-points at halftime and by 21-points at the end of the third quarter. They were able to cut the lead to eight points in the fourth quarter, but could get no closer. Former Mavericks players J.J. Barea paced the Wolves for the second straight game by scoring 21 points. Nikola Pekovic scored 20 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for the Wolves. Minnesota is off today and hosts the Los Angeles Clippers tomorrow night at 7 p.m. The Clippers romped the Grizzlies last night 99-73. LA plays in Houston tonight.

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Timberwolves star forward Kevin Love will undergo hand surgery later today in New York City. Hand surgery specialist Dr. Michelle Carson will perform the operation to repair Love's third and fourth metacarpal, which were broken earlier this month in a game at Denver. Love is expected to miss eight-to-ten weeks. He had been averaging 18.3-points per game this season and 14-rebounds per contest.

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LA Clippers star point guard Chris Paul missed LA's 99-73 win over the Grizzlies with a bruised right knee cap on Monday night. Paul is listed as day-to-day. It was the first game he has missed this season. Eric Bledsoe got the start in Paul's place and scored 14 points with four assists and three rebounds. Los Angeles still assisted on 20 of its 35 baskets despite not having its top playmaker. Bledsoe also helped slow down Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley as he shot 2-of-11 from the field and had three turnovers to one assist. The Clippers visit Minnesota tomorrow night after a game in Houston tonight.

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San Antonio Spurs guard Manu Ginobili will miss the next 10-to-14 days with a hamstring injury. An MRI taken yesterday revealed a strain. Ginobili appeared to suffer the injury in the second quarter of a 106-88 win over Minnesota on Sunday. The 35-year-old has averaged 12.9 points and 4.6 assists in 36 games this season.

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The University of Minnesota men's basketball slipped one spot in the national media poll this week, moving from No. 8 to No. 9. The Golden Gophers dropped from No. 10 to No. 12 in the national coaches poll. Minnesota lost at then-No. 5 Indiana on Saturday after beating then-No. 12 Illinois in Champaign on Wednesday. The Gophers host fifth-ranked Michigan on Thursday night at Williams Arena at 6 p.m.

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The Minnesota-Indiana men's basketball telecast on Big Ten Network last Saturday was the highest-rated men's basketball broadcast ever on the national cable channel. It was the top-rated cable television broadcast for its timeslot in both Minneapolis and Indianapolis. In fact, the rating was ten-percent higher than the previous most-watched game.

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Indiana star big man Cody Zeller has been named the Big Ten Conference Player of the Week, alongside Ohio State junior Deshaun Thomas. Zeller helped the Hoosiers to wins over Penn State and Minnesota, while Thomas pushed the Buckeyes past Purdue and Michigan.

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Concordia-Moorhead senior guard Aaron Lindahl of Benson is this week's MIAC men's basketball Player of the Week. He led the Cobbers to three wins over the past week, averaging 16-points per game in the process. Hamline senior guard Steph Pilgrim of Maple Grove is the women's MIAC honoree. She helped the Pipers to a 2-1 record last week, averagin 26-points per game.

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University of Minnesota junior vaulter Kayla Slechta of Shakopee is the Big Ten Women's Gymnastic Event Specialist of the Week. She helped Minnesota to a win over 17th-ranked Washington last weekend. This is the third weekly honor of her career.

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St. Cloud State senior wrestler Andy Pokorny of Bennington, Nebraska is this week's NSIC Wrestler of the Week. The 133-pound grapper helped the Huskies to the National Wrestling Coaches Association Division II National Duals in Springfield, Illinois. He upset the two-time defending national champion Trevor Franklin of Upper Iowa in the title bout. St. Cloud State is ranked No. 4 in the nation.

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The University of Minnesota men's hockey team remains the top-ranked club in the country. The Golden Gophers received all but three first-place votes in this week's USCHO.com poll. North Dakota is sixth, Denver is seventh, Nebraska-Omaha comes in at 13th, Minnesota State-Mankato is 14th, and the 19th spot this week goes to St. Cloud State.

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The Minnesota Wild will have a single practice today at the Xcel Energy Center, a day after scrimmaging and practicing. Training camp is in day three with Saturday's season opener against Colorado coming up. Minnesota has been using heralded prospects Mikael Granlund, Steven Kampfer, and Mathew Dumba during the early portion of training camp.

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The Minnesota Wild will host "Wild Wednesday" tomorrow at the Xcel Energy Center in preparation for Saturday's season opener night in St. Paul. "Wild Wednesday" will consist of an evening scrimmage that is already sold out, beginning at 7 p.m. In addition, the Wild "Hockey Lodge" merchandise stores in St. Paul, Burnsville, and Maplewood will hold 50-percent off sales on most items.

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The NHL lockout is over, but the chairman of the Minnesota House Commerce Committee will still hold a hearing on it later this month. Inver Grove Heights Democrat Joe Atkins says he's concerned about all sports teams that receive state subsidies and he says if we see lockout after lockout, provisions should be put in place. The Wild held their first practice Sunday. Their first game is set for Saturday at the Xcel Energy Center against the Avalanche.

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Minnesota Vikings rookie kicker Blair Walsh says he can't wait to take part in the January 27th NFL Pro Bowl game. He says to be around the game's best players is something he is in awe of. He says to be around the stars for a single game will "be awesome." He says he is hoping his long snapper Cullen Loeffler will get chosen to snap to him during the game, which will be played in Honolulu, Hawaii.

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