Shaedon Sharpe scored 33 points, Donovan Clingan narrowly missed a triple-double with 17 points, 13 rebounds and eight blocks on Wednesday, and the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Minnesota Timberwolves for the second straight night 106-98.

The loss on Wednesday night gives Minnesota an 0-2 record in NBA Cup group play and a negative 22 differential in points. They'll have a tall hill to climb as they still have games to play against the Los Angeles Clippers, Sacramento Kings, and Houston Rockets.

The Timberwolves finished the 2023-24 in season tournament with a 3-1 record, but a point differential of 0. That point differential stood in the way of Minnesota advancing to the knockout stage, as the Phoenix Suns also finished 3-1 but were +34 through their four group stage showings.