<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>MINNEAPOLIS, March 7 (Ticker) -- The Houston Rockets were without one All-Star, so they relied on their other one to pull out a victory.Yao Ming collected 30 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks as the Rockets won their third straight game with a 93-87 triumph over the slumping Minnesota Timberwolves.Houston was without leading scorer Tracy McGrady, who left in the third quarter of Sunday's win over Portland with a recurrence of the back problems that have forced him to miss 14 games this season.On Tuesday, Yao stepped up and outplayed Minnesota superstar Kevin Garnett as the fourth-year center made 11-of-24 shots and 8-of-12 free throws. Garnett managed 15 points on 6-of-17 shooting.Minnesota held a 67-61 bulge at the start of the fourth quarter before Houston's Stromile Swift and Yao took over, combining for 10 points in a 15-1 run to open the period.Garnett's monstrous dunk closed the gap to six points with just under five minutes remaining. But rookie Luther Head scored on a layup and Yao connected on two free throws as the Rockets rebuilt their lead to 80-70 with 2:15 left.Minnesota stumbled through the first 10 1/2 minutes, making just 1-of-18 shots. Head's jumper with 1:52 left gave the Rockets a 11-point edge, and the Timberwolves never challenged thereafter.Rafer Alston scored 17 points and Swift added 11 and 10 rebounds for Houston, which shot 39 percent (29-of-73) from the floor but made 7-of-15 3-pointers.Marcus Banks scored a career-high 26 points and Mark Blount contributed 18 off the bench for the Timberwolves, who shot 39 percent (34-of-87). Minnesota has dropped six of their last 10 at home.</div>we've won again w/o t-mac. i'm so proud of my rockets. :yahoo:
