The Timberwolves' first-round playoff opponent wasn't known until about 11 p.m. Wednesday, but team officials spent the past week preparing to play Dallas. It obviously proved to be a wise decision.

Wolves coach Flip Saunders said he expected the Mavericks to finish as the fourth seed because of the way the schedule set up the final week of the season. The Wolves' scouting staff studied San Antonio and the Lakers just in case, but they spent more time zeroing in on Dallas.

Their decision was perhaps as much wishful thinking as deductive reasoning. Saunders and his players publicly kept their opponent preference close to the vest the past few days. The Wolves split the season series with all three potential first-round opponents, but they said Thursday they believe Dallas provides the most favorable matchup.

"We had some success against all three teams, but we played probably the best against Dallas," point guard Chauncey Billups said. "We feel like this is a pretty good matchup."