The Blazers beat the Timberwolves in the NBA’s biggest upset in 30 years

The Portland Trail Blazers pulled off the NBA’s biggest upset in 30 years Sunday by defeating the Minnesota Timberwolves by 19.5 points.

The Trail Blazers have lost four starters, including star guard Damian Lillard, and have lost 11 of their 12 preseason games. But Portland bounced back from a 12-point deficit in the second half to outlast the elimination-minded Timberwolves 107-105 in Minneapolis.

“Everyone who went down that floor tonight, they gave it their all and that’s all I want from our guys,” Portland coach Chauncey Billups said. “To play as hard as you can, play unselfishly and be a good teammate and see what happens.”

It’s the biggest upset across the point spread since the Dallas Mavericks beat the Seattle SuperSonics as a 19.5-point underdog on April 6, 1993, and the second-largest upset in the ESPN Stats & Information database, which dates back to the 1990-91 season. The Orlando Magic beat the Chicago Bulls by 21 points in 1992, the biggest points distribution upset in that time period.

Shedon Sharp scored 27 points and Kevin Knox added 19 to lead the Blazers. Sharpe put Portland ahead 106-103 with 24.1 seconds left, and the Blazers earned a defensive stop on the Timberwolves’ final possession to end a five-game losing streak. It was Portland’s second win since March 6th.

It was the third straight loss for the Timberwolves, who are locked in a tight battle for a spot in Western Conference play-in games. The loss also drops the Timberwolves to 5-10 against the five teams with the worst records in the NBA.

“We always seem to fall short,” said Anthony Edwards, star of the Timberwolves team, about his suffering against the bottom teams. “It always haunts us. And tonight, again, yeah.”

The San Antonio Spurs also pulled off a huge upset on Sunday, defeating the Sacramento Kings in overtime as the disqualified team by 16 points.

Sunday marked the 91st time since 1990-91 that there were as many 15-point underdogs on the day. Sunday marked the first time two underdogs won, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.