Connecticut Sun vs Minnesota Lynx Prediction, 9/20/ WNBA Pick, Tips and Odds Target Center is the venue where and the Minnesota Lynx will. Screw all of my predictions, screw what everyone is thinking from this game, screw seeds and what should happen. The Lynx are winning this. The Connecticut Sun connecticut sun vs minnesota lynx prediction Minnesota Lynx will face each other in Game 2 of their best-of-three series in the WNBA playoffs on Sunday. The Sun have an ATS.
Expect more of the same in Game 3, with McBride being the focal point of the Lynx offense, whether she shoots it or her gravity opens up more 1-on-1 opportunities for Collier, Tiffany Mitchell and Diamond Miller off the bounce. Napheesa Collier will be at the center of the success of the Lynx again in Game 3 and she will play a very big role, but a player who I think might have the largest impact is Kayla McBride.
McBride has been outstanding for Minnesota this season, not only offensively and being able to help the team from anywhere on the court, but also with her defense. As I talk about more below, it will be key for Connecticut to get contributions from others outside of Alyssa Thomas and DeWanna Bonner.
With McBride and her defense, she has the ability to limit that, along with being able to hurt teams on the other end with her offensive outbursts. I am going to go with an obvious one here, Napheesa Collier. I still think it is important to point her out in this specific situation, however, because of the magnitude of the game.
It is a do-or-die game that is winner take all. The players that have to show up in these games are your superstars. Phee has been doing it all season and she needs to continue to bring it if the Lynx want to have a chance in this one. I expect to see a mammoth game from the All-Star that will go down in Lynx history. Whether Minnesota is able to pull out the win or not, Collier will be must-watch television on Wednesday night.
They hit on some of the usual suspects above. We know what Phee and K-Mac can and probably will do. Tiffany Mitchell has had an up-and-down season playing point guard, but still had a number of big-time clutch performances. Diamond Miller has really struggled through her first two WNBA playoff performances so far, to say the least. Her Sun Head Coach Stephanie White will rightfully hone all of her attention on the two Lynx stars so the opportunity for Diamond to slice Connecticut up in transition and with off-ball movement should be there.
Napheesa Collier is healthy. The Lynx superstar tweaked her SI joint lower back in the third quarter of Game 2 and was noticeably hampered down the stretch of the game. If she carries over that same level of play to Target Center, it will be hard for the Sun to slow her down.
The Lynx all season have gone as Napheesa Collier has gone, and Game 3 will be no different, one way or the other. Connecticut sun vs minnesota lynx prediction This may sound obvious, but Minnesota will win Game 3 if it simply replicates what took place in Game 2 on Sunday. The Lynx did almost everything right in Game 2, which is why they ultimately came out on top to even the series. Napheesa Collier and Kayla McBride did what they do best in leading the team, but Minnesota got contributions from others throughout the roster at different points in the game, from the energy early from the Lynx rookies to the timely shots from the second unit throughout the contest.
Those aspects, paired with the fact the Lynx limited turnovers on offense and held the Sun in check from deep, was key to stealing a game on the road. As mentioned in the preview to Game 2, if Minnesota can display a balanced attack and can get players to step up at points outside of Collier and McBride, as well as limit the mistakes on its own end offensively, the Lynx will be right there in this game.
The Lynx will win the game if they are able to play as a team and not make the moment bigger than it is. The Lynx have the opportunity to play in front of their own crowd and with all the perks that come with that. The tendency when this is the case however, is to play more solo hero-ball to try and get the crowd excited and inject energy into the team.
Never has that worked in the biggest of moments. Minnesota needs to slow it down, take care of the ball and take good shots. Let the chips fall where they may but if they are able to take a breath and stay collected, they have a darn good chance at pulling out the win. I agree that the turnover battle is super key.
Things really spiraled out of control in game one once the Lynx lost their composure on offense, leading to a ton of points off turnovers. Minnesota gave up 30 points off 19 turnovers. Minnesota lost the game by exactly 30 points. That said, I also believe that the perimeter shooting from both teams may be indicative of the result. If the Lynx can continue to force their opponents to shoot contested two-pointers while the aforementioned Miller, Banham, or Mitchell contribute from perimeter while not screwing up defensive rotations, then victory could be at their fingertips.
Their role players make a combined five 3-pointers. Expect the Sun to shoot more than the 20 3-pointers they took in Game 2; if Hayes, Hiedeman and Harris are each able make a couple of triples, the Lynx could be in trouble. Connecticut will win Game 3 and take the series if it is able to get going from deep like we saw in Game 1 and if it can get some contribution from the supporting cast outside of Alyssa Thomas and DeWanna Bonner.
In the first game of the series, the Sun were able to get that contribution from their second unit and the starters outside of Thomas and Bonner, which resulted in a balanced attack that was tough for the Lynx to stop. In the Game 2 loss, they finished with 16 points with the bench adding nine points.
If the Sun can attack the Lynx from multiple areas and also get hot from deep like seen in the first game, connecting on 16 threes, Connecticut will come away with a win to advance to the semifinals. The Sun will win the game if they are able to speed up the Lynx and force them to play that individual basketball that I talked about earlier.
Forcing Minnesota into bad shots and turnovers is the best way to take them - and the crowd - out of the game. The Lynx need to recognize this and actively counteract it if they want to win. If they are unable to do that then their dreams of an upset will be quickly squashed and the Sun will cruise into the next round.
If Stephanie White can bottle up even one of these two in game three, I have a hard time seeing the home team advancing. I said in our initial preview that the Sun would win the series , but that was based on a prediction that the Lynx would win Game 1. Minnesota has looked impressive at points against Connecticut, both during the regular season and here in the postseason.
In the first game of this two-game set, it was the Sun picking up a victory at home Tuesday night. That victory snapped a five-game winning streak by the Lynx in the series, including a overtime win at home in the first matchup this season May Which team will take the advantage in the season series by prevailing here?
Minnesota saw their eight-game win streak come to a halt as they were stifled on the offensive end by the Sun Tuesday night. The Lynx entered Wednesday on the year and stood fourth in the WNBA playoff picture, three games behind the Aces for the top spot in the standings. The Lynx were unable to get closer than one the rest of the way as the Sun clamped down on them defensively.
Minnesota shot Sylvia Fowles led the Lynx with 14 points and five rebounds in the loss. On the season, the Lynx are 5th in the league in scoring offense with an average of Minnesota is 8th in rebounding as they collect The Lynx are third in the league in scoring defense as they give up an average of Sylvia Fowles is second on the team with 16 points plus 9. Kayla McBride 14 points , Crystal Dangerfield 7.
Damiris Dantas, Napheesa Collier The Lynx are tied for 6th in the league in three-pointers per game seven and 6th in three-point shooting as they hit Minnesota is 5th in the league in free throw shooting as they hit Powers is out eight to 10 weeks after undergoing thumb surgery June 18 for a torn UCL.
Rennia Davis foot is out indefinitely at this point in time. The Sun improved to on the year, leaving them tied for second with the Storm, half a game behind the Aces for the top spot in the playoff picture. Against the Lynx, Connecticut relied on their defense to slow down a Minnesota team that had been rolling offensively and picked up the win.
Connecticut never saw their lead drop below seven the rest of the way. The Sun shot Jasmine Thomas led Connecticut with 19 points in the win. The Sun is 10th in the league in scoring offense as they put up an average of Connecticut is third in the league in rebounding The Sun have been good defensively as they are first in scoring defense by allowing an average of 72 points per game.
DeWanna Bonner is second on the Sun with Jonquel Jones team-high Jasmine Thomas The Sun are fifth in three-pointers per game 7. Connecticut has been mediocre at the charity stripe as they convert on Alyssa Thomas is still out as she recovers from offseason surgery for a torn Achilles.