The Portland Trail Blazers enjoyed their feel-good victory Tuesday night over the Minnesota Timberwolves then woke up Wednesday with the realization that they would be down three key players for the rematch.

However, playing without Anfernee Simons, Deandre Ayton and Robert Williams III proved to not be much of a problem at all.

The Blazers completed a two-game sweep of the Timberwolves with a 102-96 win at the Moda Center Wednesday night.

The stars: Shaedon Sharpe, who led all scorers with a career-high 33 points, and rookie center Donovan Clingan, who started in place of Ayton and scored 17 points with 12 rebounds and eight blocks.

Both teams shot horribly from three-point range in the first half, leading to a 48-48 halftime score. The Blazers shot 2 of 13 (15.4%) while the Timberwolves shot 4 of 23 (17.4%).

In the second half, the Blazers caught fire from outside while the Timberwolves remained cold.

Portland went 7 of 12 (58.3%) to finish at 36%, while Minnesota ended the game at 17.9%. Anthony Edwards led the Timberwolves with 24 points but went 0 of 9 from beyond the arc.

The score stood at 76-76 entering the fourth quarter, during which the Blazers built an 11-point lead and held on to win.

Sharpe scored 13 points in the quarter, including two on a follow-dunk off a Jerami Grant miss that brought the fans in the arena to their feet.

The dunk gave the Blazers a 91-83 lead with 5:24 remaining in the game.

That moment came shortly after Clingan blocked shots on consecutive defensive positions, with the second leading to a transition layup from Dalano Banton, who came off the bench to deliver 13 points with five assists.

“I just think after that Memphis game, which was such a devastating loss for us, we came in the following day and we had a real honest conversation,” Blazers coach Chauncey Billups said. “I think that there’s a lot to be gained from honesty. We addressed those things and it’s amazing what you can do when you do it together.”

Jerami Grant struggled with eight points on 3-of-12 shooting. But he made his impact in other ways.

“I thought his defense was stellar, I mean stellar all night on Anthony Edwards,” Billups said.

Anyone who had the Blazers (5-8) winning two consecutive games over the Timberwolves (6-6) after losing to them 127-102 last Friday and then on Sunday getting blown out 134-89 by Memphis should move to Las Vegas and become a professional gambler.

The Blazers suddenly look like a solid team after appearing to be a disaster just three days ago.

“They care about them playing well together,” Billups said. “These guys are not in the NBA for no reason. They are great players. They are playing for their buddy and that’s what we want.”

Clingan said the team is committed to taking the next step.

“We’re really trying to find the right things to do,” he said. “We’re really just buying in as a team. We’re trying to be a team, not selfish. We really just want to go out there, play together, have fun.”

Injured Blazers

Ayton (sprained right index finger) missed his second consecutive game. Simons (illness) left Tuesday’s game in the first quarter after experiencing shortness of breath and did not feel well when he woke up Wednesday, according to Billups. Williams, who scored 19 points with nine rebounds on Tuesday, took the night off. The Blazers, for now, want to avoid playing him in back-to-back games.

Next up

The Blazers host the Atlanta Hawks at 3 p.m. Sunday.