Minnesota Sports Briefs: T'wolves Wrap Up Homestand Tonight

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MINNEAPOLIS - The Minnesota Timberwolves wrap up their six-game homestand tonight against the New York Knicks.

Minnesota is just 1-4 on the stand following Wednesday's 104-94 setback to San Antonio. The T'wolves sit at 18-28 on the season. The Knicks are 31-16. Minnesota's Kevin Love returned to the Wolves yesterday and continues to recover from hand surgery. He isn't expected to be ready for game action for at least another month.

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Timberwolves guard Ricky Rubio has been added to the NBA All-Star Weekend Rising Challenge game in Houston. Rubio was selected to play on a team chosen by former NBA all-star Charles Barkley. Rubio's teammate Alexey Shved was selected to be part of the team last month when the participants were first announced. The game involves the NBA's top rookies and second-year players and will be played on February 15th in Houston as part of All-Star Weekend.

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The participants for the 2013 NBA Slam Dunk Contest were announced on Thursday. Last year's champion, Jeremy Evans, from the Utah Jazz will defend his title. Gerald Green, who won the dunk contest in 2007, is also in the field. They will be joined by first time participants James White, Terrence Ross, Eric Bledsoe and Kenneth Faried. The 2013 dunk contest will take place on February 16th at the Toyota Center in Houston.

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The NBA announced who will be participating in the 2013 Three-Point Contest on Thursday. The six-player field will include Stephen Curry, Steve Novak, Ryan Anderson, Matt Bonner, Kyrie Irving and Paul George. Curry is shooting 45-percent from three this season for the Warriors, while Anderson is a power forward who shoots at a 40-percent clip for the Hornets. Cavs guard Kyrie Irving and Pacers guard Paul George join Curry as the headliners of the contest, which will take place on All-Star Saturday night, February 16th in Houston at the Toyota Center.

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Former Timberwolves star Kevin Garnett is the newest member of the 25-thousand point club. The Boston Celtics big man scored 15 points in last night's 116-95 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers. He is the 16th player in NBA history to surpass the plateau. He is second among active plays behind Lakers guard Kobe Bryant. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is first with over 38-thousand career points. Garnett scored 19,041 points with Minnesota.

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The University of Minnesota women's basketball team knocked off border rival Iowa last night 72-60 at Williams Arena. Sophomore guard Rachel Banham of Lakeville poured in 34 points, hitting on 10-of-19 shots from the floor and 11-of-14 from the free throw line. Micaella Riche grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds to lead the Minnesota to a 48-34 rebounding advantage. The Golden Gophers improved to 15-9 overall and 4-6 in the Big Ten. The Gophers are at Illinois on Sunday for a 1 p.m. game.

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The 18th-ranked University of Minnesota Golden Gopher men's team is back in action on Sunday against Illinois at Williams Arena. The Gophers had their brief two-game winning streak snapped with a 61-50 setback at eighth-ranked Michigan State on Wednesday. Minnesota is 17-6 on the season and 5-5 in the Big Ten. Illinois is 16-8 and 3-7. Illinois upset top-ranked Indiana last night 74-72, getting a layup with under a second left to play from Tyler Griffey.

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St. Cloud native Nate Wolters scored a school-record 53 points to lead South Dakota State to an 80-74 win at Fort Wayne. The Jackrabbits have won eight in-a-row to improve to 19-6 and 10-2 in Summit League play. SDSU is at Oakland tomorrow.

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A Dallas promotions company is suing disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong, demanding that he repay 12-million dollars in bonuses and fees it paid him for winning the Tour De France. SCA Promotions had tried years ago to prove Armstrong cheated to win, but ultimately settled the suit out of court and paid him. Now that he's admitted to doping, the company says it wants its money back.

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