Yes, the wounds from the Timberwolves' Game 3 loss to Memphis will stick with us for awhile — unless the Wolves recover to win Saturday night's Game 4 and go on to defeat the Grizzles in their first-round playoff series. If that happens, we'll remember this as a "teachable moment" — or something like that.
Sure victory to crushing defeat: Eight more painful Minnesota losses
For Minnesota sports fans, unexpected defeats like the one for the Timberwolves at Target Center on Thursday are nothing new. Here's one list. Are we missing any that should be added?
April 22, 2022 at 5:04PM
But for Minnesota sports fans, such unexpected defeats are nothing new. Here's a list of seven. Some will always be in the forefront of our minds. Others require a little bit of probing before the pain resurfaces.
And what should be added to this list?
- Michigan 38, Gophers football 35 (2003): Minnesota was 6-0 at the team and ranked 17th in the nation. The Gophers appeared headed for a prove-it victory over the 20th-ranked Wolverines when Michigan rallied from a 21-point deficit in the fourth quarter.
- Cleveland 11, Twins 10 (1984): The Twins were making an unexpected run toward the American League West title and led Cleveland 10-0 in the third inning. Then everything went wrong in an 11-10 loss that was the lowlight in a week of lowlights. (Nope, that wasn't the 'Jamie Quirk' game. That was the previous night.)
- USC 8, Gophers baseball 7 (1973): Minnesota was one game away from a title shot in the College World Series and led 7-0 going into the ninth with Dave Winfield pitching. Southern Cal's amazing rally is still one of the most talked-about comebacks in college baseball history.
- Seattle 90, Lynx 78 (2021): The Lynx were cruising against the defending WNBA champs with a 19-point lead less than three minutes before halftime. Seattle closed to 10 in the third quarter and outscored Lynx 37-15 in the fourth. It looked more than a bit like what happened to the Wolves on Thursday.
- Seattle 3, Minnesota United 2 (2020): The Loons were just 15 minutes away from the MLS Cup championship game and held a two-goal lead. The the Sounders scored again and again ... and again three minutes into stoppage time to win the match.
- Texas Tech 44, Gophers football 38 (2006): The Gophers started the season 3-6 and became bowl eligible with three straight victories. The Gophers led 38-7 in the third quarter before the Red Raiders rallied to win in overtime. The Gophers fired Glen Mason. The Gophers hired Tim Brewster and went 1-11 in 2007.
- St. Paul Derby 1988: Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas brought a stunning-looking horse named Tejano to Canterbury Park (then called Canterbury Downs). The horse went off as a 1-2 favorite — and finished ninth in a 10-horse field. The winner was a horse named Fourstardave, a 21-1 longshot. Second was a 52-1 longshot. If you played a $2 exacta, you won $1,936.
- (Update) Ohio State 41, Gophers 37 1989: Two commenters asked how we could forget the Gophers taking a 31-0 lead against Ohio State in the second quarter before the Buckeyes rallied for the win. Minnesota was up by 11 until Ohio State scored two touchdowns in the final 3:05. A footnote: The Gophera recovered the next week to beat Wisconsin 24-22 to take possession of Paul Bunyan's Axe. (Can the Wolves do something similar in Game 4?)
What else should be on this list? Make suggestions in the comments below.
The star forward came back from a brief injury absence, and two goals from Frederick Gaudreau helped Minnesota to another road victory.
