Blazers Go Hard, Fall Short vs. Timberwolves

PORTLAND, OR - FEBRUARY 24: Rudy Gobert #27 of the Minnesota Timberwolves boxes out during the game against the Portland Trail Blazers on February 24, 2026 at the Moda Center Arena in Portland, Oregon. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photog

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What is the story about?

The Portland Trail Blazers fell short of an upset against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday night in a 124-121 loss. The two teams played a physical, hard-fought game until the very end, but Portland could not quite get the job done as Minnesota took advantage of key opportunities late to pull away.

The Blazers were led in scoring by the 22 points of Jrue Holiday. Jerami Grant and Scoot Henderson added 21 and 19 points respectively.

Anthony Edwards led the game in scoring with 34 points in the contest.

That was supplemented by the 27 points of Jaden McDaniels.

Player of the Game

Kris Murray had a season-high 16 points playing in the starting lineup. He scored 14 of those in the first half on a very efficient 7-10 shooting performance, including 2-3 behind the arc. His offensive contribution helped the Blazers get an unlikely boost, keeping them in the game as the Timberwolves threatened to pull away in the first half.

Stat of the Night

Second half points for Anthony Edwards: 9. After an explosive 25-point first half for Edwards, the Blazers were able to limit him to just 3-15 shooting from the field. The defensive pressure applied to the superstar mitigated his impact.

Being able to keep Edwards from building momentum from a hot start into a massive scoring game kept Portland in the game until late in the contest.

What We Noticed

Up against a real center in Rudy Gobert, the advantage of having Donovan Clingan in the middle was mitigated. After a string of games against teams without a true interior presence at the five, Gobert was a wake-up call of sorts. He finished with 19 rebounds and 2 blocks to go along with 10 points. Clingan was still able to grab 15 boards and swat 2 shots himself, but it has been a while since the Blazers did not have the definitive advantage in the middle.

Portland was still able to win the rebounding battle 54-46 overall, but Gobert’s abilities helped the Timberwolves grab more than a few timely boards late in the contest.