Mitchell Hansen
Web Editorial Associate
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The Minnesota Lynx will host their first day game of the 2017 season on Wednesday in St. Paul.
Minnesota hosts Dallas at noon at Xcel Energy Center in their third meeting of the regular season.
“The best thing is you don’t have to wait all day to play your game. We like playing basketball and it doesn’t matter what time of day,” Maya Moore said after practice Tuesday afternoon. “This game will be extra loud of the young kids that it is tailor-made for, so hopefully we will give them enough chances to go make some noise.”
The young kids Moore is referring to is the Camp Day crowd that will be in attendance during the game. At least once a year, the Lynx host a game during the day which allows many kids to take a field trip to watch the game in person.
“It’s a field trip for a lot of them and it’s a fun day for them because they are not in school. Taking a break from learning is OK once in a while. But what they are learning in the game is seeing strong and powerful women in a role that has been dominated by men,” Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve said. “Not only do girls get a chance to see players, connect and maybe develop a role model, but boys too. They are exposed to professional women’s basketball at a young age and they grow up expecting it.
“When you grow up seeing it as an equal, these young people eventually become decision-makers. When they are exposed to it at a young age, their minds are different than what we maybe see today. . . We feel like we are shaping a generation of both girls and boys.”
The Lynx come into the game at a WNBA-best 15-2 overall, while the Wings enter at 10-11 on the season. Minnesota holds a 2-0 season series advantage over Dallas this season.
“We’ve played them twice and the team defense was non-existent in those two games. I’m hoping to see the team we are today defensively. If we can do that, then we have the chance to control the tempo a little bit. They are going to be really headstrong in trying to control the tempo,” Reeve said. “This is a hard team to play against because they are persistent at what they do and they are really, really good at what they do. The game could get out of hand in a hurry, so overall discipline is what I’m hoping for tomorrow.”
The Lynx and Wings will battle at noon on Wednesday in St. Paul. The game will be aired on Fox Sports Go, WNBA League Pass and 106.1 BOB FM.