COURTNEY Williams scored 17 points to help the Minnesota Lynx beat the Connecticut Sun 77-70 in Game 2 on Tuesday night (Wednesday in Manila) in Minneapolis, Minnesota to even their semifinal series.
Williams was one of three Lynx players to score in double figures as they tied the series at 1-1. Alanna Smith scored 15 points and Kayla McBride added 11.
Minnesota won despite Napheesa Collier making a season-low three field goals. The WNBA Defensive Player of the Year finished with nine points, 12 rebounds, five assists and four blocks.
“We felt like we gave one up on our home court. We don’t want to be that team,” McBride said. “I thought we had a great game. Yeah, (Collier) struggled from the floor, but everything she does for us is so important. … Just gritty, man.”
For the Sun, who will host Game 3 of this series in Uncasville, Connecticut on Friday (Saturday in Manila), Alyssa Thomas again had 18 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. DeWanna Bonner added 17 points, six rebounds and five steals, while Marina Mabrey had 15 points and DiJonai Carrington scored 14.
Connecticut had won seven straight games in Minnesota before this defeat.
“Minnesota came out and they were the aggressor tonight. They wouldn’t let us get into our offense, they responded to every run that we had,” Sun coach Stephanie White said. “It’s a series for a reason. We got to go home and regroup and get ready.”
The Sun led by a point early in the second quarter when Mabrey opened the frame with a 23-foot 3-pointer. But after the Lynx snatched the lead back thanks to an 8-2 run, Connecticut never tied the score again.
Williams powered an 11-4 run by the Lynx in the third, scoring nine points during that spurt that pushed the lead to 14 points with 2:10 remaining in the quarter.
Minnesota’s lead grew to 15, its largest advantage of the day, midway through the fourth quarter when Smith connected on a layup off an assist from Natisha Hiedeman. The Sun never got closer than seven points the rest of the way.
The Sun shot 36.4 percent from the floor while the Lynx shot 45.2 percent. Connecticut also made just five 3-pointers while Minnesota knocked down eight from deep range.
After missing the Sun’s last two playoff games with an ankle injury, Tyasha Harris returned to the court but failed to score in seven minutes off the bench.
