Minnesota Lynx guard Courtney Williams looks like she’s shooting a jump shot, but instead passed over the outstretched arms of Phoenix Mercury forward Kathryn Westbeld to an open Alanna Smith who made an open layup with 7:00 left in the second quarter. Photo by Abe Booker III/Sportspage Magazine
MINNEAPOLIS – The Minnesota Lynx overcame a fast start by the visiting Phoenix Mercury to take a resounding 88-65 win in front of an 8,772-strong sellout crowd at Target Center on Tuesday night.
Phoenix forward Kitija Laksa opened the scoring with a three-pointer. Minnesota forward Napheesa Collier answered with a layup to make it 3-2 in favor of the Mercury in the game’s first minute.
The Mercury pulled out to an 11-6 lead with baskets by forward Satou Sabally, center Kathryn Westbeld and Laksa, but Minnesota answered with a layup from guard Natisha Hiedeman and two three-pointers from center Alanna Smith. Suddenly it was 15-14 in favor of Phoenix with 2:50 left in the opening quarter.
Phoenix took off on an 8-0 run with a Laksa jump shot, a put back layup from guard Lexi Held, and a layup and two free throws from Sabally. However, a three-pointer from guard Karlie Samuelson and a fast break layup by Hiedeman cut the deficit to four points. The Mercury led 23-19 at the end of the first quarter that saw both teams shooting over 50 percent from the field.
Minnesota guard Courtney Williams hit a midrange jumper when the second quarter opened, and Hiedeman scored another fast break layup after her teammate, Alanna Smith, stole the ball from Sabally. The game was tied 23-23 when Phoenix called timeout with 8:55 left on the clock until halftime.
Phoenix Mercury guard Monique Akoa Makani attempts a wide open layup during Tuesday’s game against the Minnesota Lynx at Target Center. Photo by Abe Booker III/Sportspage Magazine
The timeout was beneficial to the home team as the Lynx came roaring out to a 9-3 run. Samuelson hit another three-pointer. Smith and Hiedeman made layups. Collier made a turnaround jump shot. Mercury guard Megan McConnell answered with a three-pointer for Phoenix. Minnesota led 32-26 with 5:32 left until the halftime break.
Collier kicked the ball for a dead ball stoppage in play with 2:27 on the clock. The Mercury failed to inbound the ball within the allotted five-seconds, leading to their sixth turnover of the game. Hiedeman scored a layup on the ensuing possession to give the Lynx a 39-30 lead.
Sabally tried to take matters into her own hands. She scored a layup and was fouled by Lynx forward Bridget Carleton to cut the deficit to six points. Lynx forward Jessica Shepard made a layup to extend the lead back to eight. Sabally then missed an easy wide open layup.
Hiedeman hit a three-pointer, which was answered by a jump shot from Mercury guard Monique Akoa Makani. Minnesota led 44-35 at halftime. Minnesota shot 68.8 percent in the second quarter compared to Phoenix’s 26.3 percent. Both teams turned the ball over four times in the quarter.
The Lynx stayed one step ahead of the Mercury in the third quarter. Whenever Phoenix scored, Minnesota scored. Makani made a layup to open the third quarter. It was answered by one from Courtney Williams. Lynx guard Kayla McBride hit a three-pointer, Makani answered. However, the officials reviewed Makani’s three pointer during a timeout and waived it off. Smith and Whitcomb traded layups, as did Collier and Mercury forward Murjanatu Musa. Minnesota led 53-41 with 4:25 left in the third quarter.
Minnesota Lynx forward Jessica Shepard prepares to drive against Phoenix Mercury center Kalani Brown during Tuesday’s game at Target Center. Photo by Abe Booker III/Sportspage Magazine
Collier hit a shot and McBride made a fast break layup after a bad pass turnover by Whitcomb. Held and Smith exchanged three-pointers. Held scored a jump shot and then Samuelson answered with a three-ball of her own. It was 63-46 with 2:22 left when both teams got their bench in to play out the rest of the quarter. Minnesota led 67-49 at the end of three quarters of play.
Phoenix’s woes continued when Sabally picked up two fouls in the first 18 seconds of the fourth quarter. The two free throws by Shepard on Sabally’s second foul gave the Lynx a 20 point lead.
Laksa connected on a three-pointer and Whitcomb made a fast break layup. Minnesota called a timeout and the Lynx starters went back into the game.
Minnesota came out of the timeout on fire. Collier hit a jump shot and then a layup and free throw after getting fouled by McConnell. Carleton hit a three-pointer and McBride made back-to-back three’s with a Phoenix timeout sandwiched in between. The only answer the Mercury could come up with was a short jumper by Sabally. After the 14-1 run, Minnesota led 83-56 and there was only 4:14 left in the contest.
Both benches played out the last three minutes of the game. Held, who played all ten minutes in the quarter for the Mercury, made two short jump shots and a three-pointer for seven points in the quarter. Lynx forward Diamond Miller and Mercury center Kalani Brown then exchanged layups.
Phoenix Mercury players and training staff attend to guard Megan McConnell who was injured in a collision with Minnesota Lynx forward Alissa Pili while both were scrambling for a loose ball with 1:43 left to play in Tuesday’s game. Photo by Abe Booker III/Sportspage Magazine
With 1:43 left on the clock, Lynx forward Alissa Pili and McConnell collided while going for a loose ball. Pili picked up the foul, but McConnell stayed on the floor for an extended period while the trainers looked her over. She came out of the game and was immediately taken to the training room for evaluation. Westbeld re-entered the game for the remainder.
Hiedeman finished the scoring with a three-pointer to make the final score 88-65 in favor of the Lynx.
Minnesota went 34-for-58 (58.6 percent) from the field; 12-for-25 (48.0 percent) from three-point range; and 8-for-9 (88.9 percent) from the free throw line. They committed 25 turnovers which led to 21 Mercury points.
“I thought our first quarter play led to our sense of urgency and [being] more purposeful,” said Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve. “I think start to finish, it was probably our best defensive game. It was our highest deflection game of the season.”
Phoenix went 28-for-73 (38.4 percent) from the field; 5-for-30 (16.7 percent) from three-point range; and 4-for-5 (80.0 percent) from the charity stripe. They turned the ball over 14 times for 15 Lynx points.
“We came out in the first quarter and I thought we did a pretty good job. We got a little bit careless in the second,” said Mercury head coach Nate Tibbetts. “We’re just asking a lot of people to do some things that normally they’re not used to doing. Some nights it’s going to be easier than others.”
“I give Minnesota credit. They really guard. They compete at a high, high level. They’re going to be one of the top defensive teams in our league by the time it’s said and done just by how competitive they are,” Tibbetts added.
Minnesota led 42-38 in points-in-the-paint; 5-3 in second chance points; and dominated the fast break points 23-9. There was one tie and one lead change.
“Going into the Golden State game, we were the third best in turnover rate. We’ve been pretty good in that area. It obviously got away from us today,” said Reeve. “Phoenix’s point of attack defense, we were just playing around with it too much. We needed to get off the ball more…They’re feisty. Their guards are feisty. Credit to them. This is what they’re doing. They’re averaging 9.4 steals a game. We kind of helped their average.”
Minnesota Lynx guard Natisha Hiedeman gets interviewed following Tuesday’s game against the Phoenix Mercury where she scored a game-high 18 points. Photo by Abe Booker III/Sportspage Magazine
The Lynx were led by 18 points each from Natisha Hiedeman and Napheesa Collier. Alanna Smith and Kayla McBride each added 13 points. Collier led all rebounders with 11. McBride dished a game leading seven assists.
“I would say today felt a lot better defensively for us. I think we were way more connected on the floor,” said Smith.
The Mercury was led by Lexi Held’s 16 points. Satou Sabally added 15 points and Kitija Laksa added 10 more. Sabally led Phoenix with eight rebounds, while Megan McConnell and Kathryn Westbeld led the Mercury with three assists each. Phoenix was without forward Kahleah Copper, center Natasha Mack and forward Alyssa Thomas, who did not travel with the team as they are currently nursing injuries.
“I thought we were more aggressive in the second half, but it’s hard to get good looks against them. They’re a good defensive team. We just gotta be sharper on offense,” said Held.
The Mercury (5-3) host the Golden State Valkyries (2-4) at 9 p.m. CT on Thursday. Minnesota (8-0) travels to Dallas for a 3 p.m. CT game against the Wings (1-7) on Sunday.
