Just one victory away from a perfect January, Kevin Garnett and his Timberwolves teammates defeated the Suns 121-112 in Minneapolis on Monday night and put an end to their 17-game win streak.

    Garnett almost single-handedly snapped the Suns¡¯streak, scoring 44 points and grabbing 11 rebounds.

    "People who say he can't carry the load, take a look at this game film," new Timberwolves coach Randy Wittman said.

    The All-Star forward, sometimes criticized for not coming up big in the clutch, was everywhere in the final period against the Suns, making turnaround jumper after turnaround jumper to give Phoenix its first loss of 2007.

    He scored 15 points in the fourth, including a looping fallaway from the baseline that gave Minnesota a 118-109 lead with 1:55 to play, and put Wittman on the way to a win in his home debut.

    "It's just about being a presence," Garnett said. "It's about making them have to deal with me. I will continue to take that approach."

    Raja Bell scored 26 points and Steve Nash had 20 points and 18 assists for the Suns, who were looking to tie for the fourth-longest winning streak in NBA history.

    But one night after downing LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers for No. 17 in a row, the Suns couldn't find an answer for Garnett and uncharacteristically lost their offense in the final quarter.

    After scoring 95 points in the first three quarters, Phoenix managed just 19 in the fourth and looked a little stagnant.

    Nash dissected the Wolves¡¯defense for the first three quarters, piling up assists at a near-record pace. But he scored just three points on 1-of-6 shooting and had just one assist in a final period that belonged to Garnett.

    "Better to lose that way than to lose when we beat ourselves," Nash said. "Kevin was sensational. We just didn't make shots at the end at the clip Kevin was making them."

    When the final buzzer sounded, Garnett came over to Wittman and stood eye-to-eye with the new coach, shouting encouragement before stomping off the floor. Wittman took over for the fired Dwane Casey last week.

    "I think we all felt bad when Case lost his job," Garnett said. "No one ever wants to get fired or traded ... It was really heartfelt in letting (Wittman) know that we'll fight for you every night."

    Ricky Davis had 17 points for the Timberwolves, who shot 59 percent and simply wore the Suns down in the final minutes.

    Shawn Marion had 24 points and 10 rebounds and Leandro Barbosa added 17 for Phoenix, which entered the night 15-0 in January.

    "We'll start another one," Phoenix coach Mike D'Antoni said. "This is fun."

    (Agencies)