HOUSTON _ The Timberwolves bade farewell to 14 years without a playoff appearance Sunday night in Houston and Rockets superstar James Harden said a rude hello to them in a best-of-seven series with a 104-101 victory at Toyota Center.
Frontrunner for league MVP after he led the Rockets to 65 regular-season victories, Harden made seven 3-pointers for a Rockets team that shoots them by the gross and he scored 44 points, 25 of them in the second half.
It was enough to hold off a Wolves team that turned a late nine-point deficit into just three points in the final 10 seconds, but couldn't tie the game when four-time All Star Jimmy Butler's desperate 3-pointer was short in the final second.
Harden scored the third quarter's final six points on a made 3-pointer and a three-point play as well to turn a 73-70 deficit into a 76-73 lead after three quarters.
In a fourth quarter when the Wolves lead 86-85 with 6:49 left, Harden scored 11 consecutive points for his team a variety of step-back jumpers from both two- and 3-point range as well as fearless drives to the rim.
Harden's play befitting a MVP gave the Rockets a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven series that continues Wednesday in Houston.
Playoff-bound only after they beat Denver in overtime on Wednesday, the Wolves four days later fought the Rockets well into the fourth quarter after they had been swept 4-0 in the regular-season series. The Rockets won the first three games each by a margin of 18 points and fourth by half that.
On Sunday, they were within 102-99 with 26.3 seconds left, but had to foul in a comeback attempt that ultimately failed on a night when Wolves' playoff newcomer Andrew Wiggins and veteran Jeff Teague alike found trouble and relatively recently signed Derrick Rose stepped forth to play 24 minutes and score 16 points.
They had one last chance when the Rockets committed a turnover in the final 10 seconds.
Wiggins led the Wolves with 18 points on a night when the Rockets muscled Wolves All-Star center Karl-Anthony Towns at every turn.
When it was over, he scored eight points on 3-for-9 shooting from the field that included two missed 3-point attempts.
Wiggins stepped forth early, making four of his first seven shots from the field and scored eight first-quarter points on a night the Wolves trailed 13-4 and 17-6 early before he found third-quarter foul trouble.
Rose was called upon to play more than usual, delivering 14 first-half minutes after starter Teague picked up three first-quarter calls. He then was called upon again just four minutes into the third quarter after Wiggins picked up his fourth foul.
Rose had scored 16 of his points by the time the Wolves headed to the fourth quarter trailing 76-73 after Harden scored the third quarter's final six points on his fifth made 3-pointer of the night and a three-point play converted after he drove hard to the rim, scored and drew a foul, like league MVP have been known to do.
Both teams struggled for most of the first half to make shots, particularly 3-pointers. The NBA's most frequent 3-point shooters by a large margin, the Rockets made just two of their 14 attempts and were 4-for-19 by halftime.
By then, they had rebuilt their lead to 54-47 after the Wolves played their way back into the game, tying the score late at 21 late in the first quarter and building a two-point lead twice midway through the second quarter while the Rockets couldn't find their three-point shooting range.
When they did, Harden's consecutive threes helped give the Rockets two 10-point leads in the final half's final two minutes before Butler was fouled on a three-point shot and made all three to get the Wolves within seven points by intermission.
The Wolves played their first playoff game since 2004 in the same city where they played their very first.
