Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier attempts a shot while Connecticut Sun center Olivia Nelson-Ododa watches during Friday night’s game at Target Center. Collier scored 33 points in the contest. Photo by Abe Booker III/Sportspage Magazine
MINNEAPOLIS – The Minnesota Lynx used a 23-2 run in the final 5:20 of play to erase a 15 point deficit and muscle their way to a 76-70 win past the visiting Connecticut Sun in front of 8,224 gathered at Target Center Friday night.
It was the Sun who struck first. Connecticut center Olivia Nelson-Ododa made the opening layup 45 seconds into the contest for the early 2-0 lead, but it wasn’t for two more minutes until a layup from Minnesota center Alanna Smith tied it up 2-2. The Lynx opened the game 0-for-4 in field goal shooting in the first three minutes of the game.
Connecticut continued scoring with a three-pointer from guard Marina Mabrey, midrange jump shot from center Tina Charles, and layups from guard Saniya Rivers and Nelson-Ododa. Minnesota forward Jessica Shepard made one layup during the 9-2 Sun run. Connecticut led 11-4 when the Lynx called timeout with 4:48 left in the first quarter.
The Lynx took advantage of the timeout to refocus. When play resumed, their fortunes turned around. Forward Napheesa Collier hit a jump shot. Forward Diamond Miller made a running layup. Shepard scored on a layup, and then was fouled after getting a rebound on a possession a minute later, converting one of two free throw attempts. The 7-0 Lynx run tied the score 11-11 with 2:32 left in the opening frame.
Sun forward Haley Peters and guard Bria Hartley made a three-pointer, but those were answered by two free throws each by Lynx guard Karlie Samuelson and forward Alissa Pili. Connecticut led by one point until Rivers hit a three-pointer with 31.7 seconds left. The Sun led 19-15 when the quarter came to a close.
Peters and Collier exchanged baskets when the second quarter began. Peters hit a three-pointer, which was answered with a layup from Collier. Then Rivers scored a basket, and Collier answered with a three-pointer. Peters made another jump shot, but this time Lynx forward Bridget Carleton answered the call with a three-pointer. The score was 26-23 in favor of the Sun with 7:57 left until halftime.
Connecticut Sun guard Bria Hartley attempts to drive past Minnesota Lynx forward Diamond Miller during Friday’s game at Target Center. Photo by Abe Booker III/Sportspage Magazine
Mabrey made a free throw after Collier was called for a transition take foul, and then the Sun guard followed it up with a three-pointer to extend the Connecticut lead to seven.
Peters and Mabrey each added three-pointers, while Lynx guard Natisha Hiedeman answered with a layup. After a Minnesota timeout, Nelson-Ododa made a layup to give the Sun a 40-28 lead, the largest of the half.
Collier and Sun guard Jacy Sheldon exchanged three’s, Shepard and Nelson-Ododa exchanged layups, and Collier finished the quarter with a layup. The Sun led 45-35 at halftime.
The teams kept it pretty even in the third quarter as both teams struggled with turnovers and missed shots. Mabrey made a three-pointer for the Sun to extend the lead to 13, but Shepard and Collier each scored layups for the Lynx to cut the deficit to nine. Mabrey was then fouled by Collier and made both free throws, but that was followed up by a layup by Collier and a foul by Mabrey. After the free shot, the Sun led 50-42 with 5:54 remaining in the third quarter.
Peters and Rivers each scored to put the Sun lead back up to 12, but Shepard and Carleton combined for a 5-0 run to close out the period. Connecticut led 56-49 at the end of the third quarter.
The Sun continued to build on their lead early in the fourth quarter as Mabrey connected on a jump shot, and made a layup, getting fouled by Carleton in the process. After the free throw, Connecticut led 61-49.
Connecticut guard Marina Mabrey’s 22 points led the Sun during Friday’s game versus the Minnesota Lynx at Target Center. Photo by Abe Booker III/Sportspage Magazine
However, Mabrey picked up her fourth foul against Natisha Hiedeman, who made only one of two free throws. Then Nelson-Ododa was assessed a technical foul. The free shot was made by Collier.
Mabrey picked up her fifth foul at the 7:34 minute mark and was relegated to the bench. Despite missing their point guard, the Sun managed to stay one step ahead of the Lynx, at least for the next two minutes. Sheldon hit a three-pointer, Nelson-Ododa made a put-back layup, and Charles hit a jump shot. The Sun led 68-53, the 15-point margin being their largest of the game, and there was only 5:20 left on the clock.
What happened next defies conventional logic. Making up a three-point margin every minute in a contested game is a nearly-impossible feat. All the leading team has to do is run the shot clock down on every possession, make a few shots, get a few rebounds, and they can come away with the victory.
It started with a three-pointer by Collier. Then Connecticut called a timeout. When play resumed, Hiedeman made one of two free shots after getting fouled by Sheldon. Shepard rebounded the missed free throw and was fouled by Nelson-Ododa. After converting both free throws, Minnesota cut the deficit to single digits. It was 68-59 with 4:12 left on the clock.
Mabrey returned to the game and missed a 16-foot jumper. Collier rebounded the miss and passed to Hiedeman, who was wide open for a fast break layup. Then came a Connecticut shot clock violation followed by a Samuelson three-pointer. With 3:06 remaining on the clock, the Lynx cut the deficit to four points, as the Sun led 68-64 and Minnesota was on an 11-0 run.
Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier blocks a shot attempt by Connecticut Sun guard Bria Hartley during Friday’s game at Target Center. Photo by Abe Booker III/Sportspage Magazine
Rivers and Mabrey each missed shots for the Sun. Hiedeman rebounded Mabrey’s missed shot and sent the outlet pass to Collier who nailed the jump shot to cut the deficit to two points. The momentum had clearly shifted and Target Center erupted in cheers.
The Sun committed another shot clock violation.
Charles fouled Collier. The crowd, which just seconds before was so loud that the players had difficulty hearing, was now so quiet that you could hear one person in the crowd shouting “MVP” while Collier was on the free throw line. She made both free throws and the Target Center erupted in cheers again. Minnesota was on a 15-0 run and had tied the game 68-68 with 1:38 left to play.
Hiedeman added a three-pointer to the score to give Minnesota their first lead of the game. Connecticut called timeout, trying to find a way to stop the Lynx 18-0 run and get back into the game.
Mabrey made a layup with 42.6 seconds on the clock to make it a 71-70 Lynx lead. After a Minnesota reset timeout, Hiedeman made a layup with 31.3 seconds remaining to give the home team a three-point advantage.
The Sun took another timeout.
Carleton stole the inbounds pass from Sheldon, dished it to Collier who was fouled by Charles. Collier made both free throws to make it a 75-70 Lynx lead.
Minnesota Lynx forward Jessica Shepard prepares to launch a layup attempt over Connecticut Sun forward Aneesah Morrow during Friday’s game at Target Center. Photo by Abe Booker III/Sportspage Magazine
Mabrey missed a three-pointer, which was rebounded by Collier. Nelson-Ododa was assessed with a transition take foul, which sent Collier to the line for two free throws. She made one and missed one. Mabrey threw up one more three-point shot attempt, which was rebounded by Sheldon who threw up a desperation turnaround jump shot that also missed.
The buzzer sounded with Minnesota on top 76-70 having used a 23-2 run to erase a 15 point deficit to take a six-point lead.
Minnesota went 25-for-64 (39.1 percent) from the field; 7-for-24 (29.2 percent) from three-point range; and 19-for-26 (73.1 percent) from the free throw line. They committed 15 turnovers which led to 14 Sun points.
“We just didn’t have a way about us that demonstrated a sense of urgency and being hard to play against,” said Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve. “You know, playing with pace, fly up the floor, get into your action quick. For whatever reason, that was absent until those last five minutes. The sense of urgency was there. I certainly appreciate the ability to do that and secure a win, but obviously we need to be better.”
Connecticut went 27-for-66 (40.9 percent) from the field; 10-for-30 (33.3 percent) from three-point range; and 6-for-6 (100.0 percent) from the charity stripe. They turned the ball over 23 times for 18 Lynx points.
“I really appreciate the 34 minutes when we played like we have to play. Lots of ball movement. We created a lot of good wide-open shots. We had 22 assists on 27 made shots,” said Sun head coach Rachid Meziane. “But the Minnesota Lynx set the defense higher and we didn’t handle this kind of aggressiveness. We have to learn. I think it was a good game. It was not a win but still a good game for us.”
Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier and guard Natisha Hiedeman embrace after Friday’s win over the Connecticut Sun. They used a 23-2 run in the last 5:20 to come from 15 points behind to win the game 76-70. Photo by Abe Booker III/Sportspage Magazine
Minnesota held the 32-22 advantage in points-in-the-paint, and 10-5 lead in fast break points. Connecticut had a 10-8 edge in second chance points.
“Certainly it was our goal to be good coming out of training camp. We just still have a long way to go. To be at 4-0, I just feel like we’ve got to really start shoring some things up. I think we’ve learned a lot in four games. That’s been really valuable. To do it while you’re winning is obviously a plus” said Reeve.
The Lynx were led by 33 points from Napheesa Collier, who also led the game with 11 rebounds. Jessica Shepard added 13 points and led Minnesota with four assists. Natisha Hiedeman chipped in 11 points.
“They were amazing. It was so fun. I mean, it was so loud, they were like our sixth man out there. They were behind us the whole time,” said Collier when asked about the home crowd. “It’s so fun to play in an environment like that. The Lynx are famous for that. We are notoriously hard to play against because they make it so loud. [The opposing players] couldn’t heard their play calls. That’s exactly what we want. It was really fun and such a great environment. It just makes me proud to be able to play here.”
The Sun was led by 22 points and six assists from Marina Mabrey. Haley Peters added 12 points, Saniya Rivers contributed 11 points, and Olivia Nelson-Ododa pitched in 10 points and 10 rebounds.
“We’re just inexperienced right now. When it gets down the stretch, we need to slow it down sometimes, execute and do other little things that can change the end of the fourth quarter,” said Marina Mabrey. “Maybe we go back to a set that’s been working for us. That we didn’t do, which kind of hurt us.”
“Defensively, it hurt us because we fouled so early in the fourth quarter so we weren’t able to use our fouls at the end when it would have been necessary,” she added.
The Minnesota Lynx (4-0) host the Seattle Storm (2-1) at 7 p.m. CT on Tuesday at Target Center. The Sun (0-3) travels to Atlanta (1-2) for a 2 p.m. CT matchup against the Dream on Sunday.
