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.

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.