quietly gauging interest on the Senators capta

MINNEAPOLIS -- Kevin Love is used to carrying the beat-up Minnesota Timberwolves lately. This time, he finally had some help when he sat down to take a rest. Love had 42 points and 16 rebounds, Ricky Rubio tied a franchise high with 17 assists, and the Timberwolves beat Paul George and the Indiana Pacers 104-91 on Wednesday night. J.J. Barea scored 12 points off the bench as the Wolves took control early against the Eastern Conference leaders. "This is one of my favourite wins of the season just because we played a very good team," Love said. "We did it without two key players and we fought hard." George led Indiana with 35 points, but managed just two in the fourth quarter as the Pacers lost for the third time in five games, never once taking a lead. "We just didnt have a whole lot of pop tonight," said David West, who scored four points and struggled guarding Love all night. "This is a game that I thought we would come out and play a little better than we did. We just didnt have it, just a step or two slow." It was Loves eighth straight game with at least 25 points and 10 rebounds, the longest streak since Shaquille ONeal accomplished the same feat Jan. 3-19, 2005. Love has an NBA-best 14 games with 30 points and 10 rebounds this season. "I thought a lot of the shots he made was good defence," Pacers coach Frank Vogel said. "You have to give him credit. He is an extraordinary player and he played an extraordinary game tonight." In their first game since the All-Star break as they try to make a late-season run and catch Golden State for the final playoff spot in the West, the Wolves came out running and led by 16 when Love came out for a rest 3 minutes into the second quarter. Minnesotas reserves have been unable to hold their ground when Love goes to the bench recently, but they did fine on Wednesday. Barea, the subject of recent trade rumours, scored eight straight points during one stretch -- including a circus shot on the fast break over C.J. Watson that increased Minnesotas lead to 20 with 6:48 left in the half. "When he gets his rest, we need other people to step up," Barea said. "Tonight, we were able to do that." Love scored 18 points in the third quarter, including a jumper from just inside the 3-point line with 0.8 seconds left that pushed the Wolves lead back up to 10 after an Indiana run. Minnesota, playing without injured starters Nikola Pekovic and Kevin Martin, led by as many as 17 in the third quarter. However, with Love sitting to start the fourth, a jumper from Watson early in the quarter cut Indianas deficit to five and gave the Pacers hope. But again, Minnesotas reserves held on. Barea knocked down a jump shot in front of the Wolves bench to extend the lead back to 11 with 8:33 to play and the Wolves never looked back. "Coach came to me and said hes going to give me a little bit of a rest," Love said. "He came to me during the timeout and said These guys are rolling. I said Great, just keep them in as long as you need to. Those guys just did a great job and really stepped up and took advantage of the opportunity tonight." When Love returned, he reeled in a full-court pass from Rubio with his fingertips and slammed it home to give the Wolves a 98-84 lead. Indiana went into the All-Star break stuck in a shooting slump, but shot 50 per cent in a win over Atlanta on Tuesday. The Pacers made just 8 of 22 shots to start Wednesdays game and finished at 40 per cent. "We will reflect on this," George said. "We really didnt want to lose and drop this game. But we have to move on. Its all about the next game." George Hill finished with 13 points and Lance Stephenson had 10 despite missing his first six shots. NOTES: Wolves coach Rick Adelman on how trade rumours impact players as the deadline approaches: "I think it definitely affects them. But its all part of the business, especially now," he said. ... The Pacers are 8-7 on the second game of a back-to-back. "Not really," Vogel answered after he was asked if he, George and Roy Hibbert have caught up on rest after All-Star weekend. "Im a little more tired than usual. Im sure those guys are. But it doesnt mean anything. Still have to go out and win games." The Wolves still dont know when Pekovic or Martin will return. Adelman said Martin will get his injured thumb examined again in the next day or two. .. Wolves centre Ronny Turiaf left in the fourth quarter with a right knee injury and didnt return. Patrick Patterson Jersey .C. -- Charles Oakley, one of the NBAs all-time tough guys, may not return to the Charlotte Bobcats bench next season because of a painful back condition he says was caused during an assault last year in Las Vegas. Custom Oklahoma City Thunder Jerseys . -- Peyton Manning is the only player in this Super Bowl who has won the big game. https://www.thunderrookiesshop.com/Kevin-Durant-City-Edition-Jersey/ . With nothing tangible at stake, the Raptors turned in their most impressive outing of the fall in their seventh and second to last exhibition tilt against their stiffest competition yet, but they lost a couple starters in the process. Steven Adams Jersey . Sources tell TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger that the team is quietly gauging interest on the Senators captain, though Spezza has a limited no-trade clause and carries a large contract. Devon Hall Thunder Jersey . And on Sunday against the Houston Astros they were pleased to see his work finally pay off with his first win since May 24.NASHVILLE -- The Tennessee Titans have re-signed offensive lineman Kevin Matthews and have released tight end Visanthe Shiancoe. Both moves were announced Tuesday. The Titans had waived Matthews on Saturday when they promoted wide receiver Michael Preston from the practice squad. Matthews played 14 games and made two starts for the Titans in 2012.dddddddddddd Matthews, the son of Hall of Famer and Titans offensive line coach Bruce Matthews, also appeared in three games and made one start for the Titans in 2010. The Titans had signed Shiancoe last week. He caught a pair of passes for 2 yards Sunday in a 51-28 loss to the Denver Broncos. ' ' '