Mitchell Hansen
Web Editorial Associate
Twitter
The end of the regular season is here.
The Minnesota Lynx will wrap up the regular season against the Washington Mystics on Sunday afternoon at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul.
Minnesota comes into the game at 26-7 overall and sit atop the WNBA standings. Washington enters at 18-15 on the year and are in fifth place in the league standings.
Here are three tidbits entering Sunday’s game:
- The Lynx will clinch the top spot in the WNBA Playoffs with a win over the Mystics on Sunday.
- Minnesota holds a one-game lead over the Los Angeles Sparks for the best record in the league.
- The Lynx hold a 14-2 record at home this season. The Mystics are 7-9 on the road.
Coming Off Of…
Minnesota is coming off of a 110-87 win over the Chicago Sky on Friday night in St. Paul.
Sylvia Fowles had 27 points, 12 rebounds and a career-high-tying five assists and Maya Moore had a near triple-double of 20 points, nine assists and seven to lead the way for Minnesota in the game. Renee Montgomery had a season-high 21 points and five assists, Seimone Augustus had 11 points and five assists, Rebekkah Brunson had eight points and five rebounds, Plenette Pierson had eight points, Alexis Jones had five points and five assists and Cecilia Zandalasini had two points, her first two points of her WNBA career.
Washington is coming off of a 110-106 overtime win over the Seattle Storm on Friday night in the nation’s capital.
Elena Delle Donne led the way with 37 points and seven rebounds. Emma Meesseman had 27 points, eight rebounds and five assists, Kristi Toliver had 12 points and eight assists, Allison Hightower had 10 points and Tianna Hawkins added nine points off the bench.
Last Matchup
Minnesota holds a 2-0 season series advantage over Washington this season. The Lynx came away with a 93-76 win on June 23 in St. Paul.
In that game, Moore had 22 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists and Fowles had 21 points, 15 rebounds and five blocks to lead the Lynx. Lindsay Whalen had 12 points, six assists and six rebounds, Rebekkah Brunson had 11 points and four rebounds and Seimone Augustus and Natasha Howard each had nine points.
For the Mystics, Tayler Hill had 21 points and three rebounds and Elena Delle Donne had 17 points and eight rebounds. Kristi Toliver had 14 points and Natasha Cloud had seven points off the bench.
Key Matchup: Rebekkah Brunson vs. Elena Delle Donne
One matchup to watch for in Sunday afternoon’s game will come between Minnesota’s Rebekkah Brunson and Washington’s Elena Delle Donne.
So far this season, Brunson is averaging 10.2 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 0.9 steals per game.
In 24 games, Delle Donne is averaging 20 points, seven rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.5 blocks per game.
Injuries
Washington: Tayler Hill (knee) is out.
Minnesota: Whalen (left hand) is out.
Projected Starters
Washington: PG – Ruffin-Pratt, SG – Toliver, SF – Meesseman, PF – Delle Donne, C – Thomas
Minnesota: PG – Montgomery, SG – Augustus, SF – Moore, PF – Brunson, C – Fowles