RECAP | BOX SCORE | GAME FLOW

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) _ Rookie Will Avery filled in for point guard Terrell Brandon and guided the Minnesota Timberwolves past the Atlanta Hawks 86-76 in overtime Tuesday night.

Bobby Jackson started in place of the flu-ridden Brandon but he was largely ineffective. Not so Avery, whose 3-pointer with 1:56 left in OT gave the Wolves their biggest lead of the night, 82-73.

Avery finished with a season-best 13 points and seven assists.

Kevin Garnett had another poor shooting performance (9-for-26) but managed 18 points, as did Joe Smith, who scored four baskets in overtime.

The Wolves nearly had a franchise first _ holding an opponent scoreless in overtime. But Dion Glover swished a 3-pointer with three seconds left.

Jim Jackson's 13 points led the Hawks, who lost their ninth straight on the road.

The game was tied at 73 after regulation. Garnett missed an 18-foot jumper at the buzzer after Atlanta's Jason Terry drove the lane and scored against Jackson with 3.6 seconds left to tie it.

The Wolves missed their first 11 shots, three by Jackson, and Minnesota's starters were just 6-for-29 from the field in the first half. They trailed 43-40 at halftime.

After Jim Jackson's jumper capped a 19-6 run spanning halftime that gave Atlanta a 52-46 lead, the Wolves called a timeout and a flustered fan behind the home bench yelled, "These guys (stink)!"

Garnett turned from the huddle and told the heckler: "Get out the gym, then. Leave!"

The Wolves were coming off back-to-back losses in which Garnett scored just 14 points in each defeat, a 24-point loss to Indiana and a one-point loss to Phoenix in which Minnesota blew a 13-point fourth-quarter lead.

The skid all but buried the Wolves' hopes of moving into fourth place in the Western Conference and gaining homecourt advantage in the playoffs for the first time in franchise history.

Brandon's illness comes at a particularly bad time for the Wolves, who play six of their next seven games on the road. Saunders said he didn't know if Brandon would make the team's trip to the West Coast on Wednesday.

Notes: Wolves forward Tom Hammonds also sat out. He bruised his right knee in a collision with Joe Smith at practice on Monday and didn't dress for the game. ... Brandon missed his 10th game this season. ... Atlanta leads the all-time series 14-6. ... Hawks forward Chris Crawford sat out with a sprained left ankle.