Minnesota @ Portland preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 14, 2018 ) Portland 103, Minnesota 120

The Minnesota Timberwolves propelled themselves into third place in the Western Conference with wins in seven of the last nine games, including a 126-118 triumph at the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday to kick off a three-game road trip. The Timberwolves will try to run their latest winning streak to three straight when they begin a tough back-to-back by visiting the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday.

Minnesota, which visits West-leading Golden State on Thursday, dropped four in a row on the road before going into Los Angeles on Monday and scoring at least 30 points in each quarter. The Timberwolves have won two in a row without leading scorer Jimmy Butler (21.4 points) by leaning on small forward Andrew Wiggins, who followed up a 29-point effort in a win over Toronto on Saturday by going off for 40 points against the Clippers. The Trail Blazers, who lost at Minnesota 120-103 on Jan. 14, will have to figure out how to guard an athletic wing like Wiggins after letting Denver's Jamal Murray go off for 38 points on 14-of-19 shooting in a 104-101 loss on Monday. "I'm frustrated that we didn't win," Portland point guard Damian Lillard told reporters. "But I understand that we didn't do the things down the stretch that would have allowed us to close the door."

TV: 10 p.m. ET, FS North (Minnesota), NBCS Northwest (Portland)

ABOUT THE TIMBERWOLVES (31-18): Wiggins went 16-of-28 from the floor and added six rebounds Monday in his highest-scoring performance of the season. "It was amazing," Minnesota center Karl-Anthony Towns told reporters of Wiggins' performance. "I don't know if I put the voodoo on him, but I told him he was going to get 40 tonight. He made me look good. I'm happy for him. He was playing spirited basketball and playing at a high level all night. It just seemed like we were in Staples Center watching young Kobe play out there." Wiggins, who averages 18.2 points, had not even reached 30 points since going for 41 at Staples Center against the Los Angeles Lakers on April 9, 2017.

ABOUT THE TRAIL BLAZERS (25-22): Lillard was named Western Conference Player of the Week on Monday after averaging 29.3 points on 52.7 percent shooting in three wins last week and kept up the pace by scoring 25 on 10-of-18 at Denver. Lillard's backcourt mate, shooting guard CJ McCollum, is not quite as hot and slumped to 3-of-14 from the floor on Monday. The three made field goals marked McCollum's lowest total since he went 1-of-14 in a loss at Philadelphia on Nov. 22.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Butler and SG Jamal Crawford (toe) are both day-to-day.

2. Trail Blazers C Jusuf Nurkic recorded a double-double in two of his last three games and scored in double figures in each of the three contests.

3. Minnesota lost in both of its trips to Portland last season.

PREDICTION: Timberwolves 109, Trail Blazers 105