Mitchell Hansen
Web Editorial Associate
Twitter
The Minnesota Lynx announced their 2017 regular season schedule Tuesday morning.
This season, the Lynx will play six games in the month of May, seven in June, 11 in August and two in September. Three of those games will be nationally broadcasted on ESPN2.
The Lynx kick off their 19th WNBA season at home against the Chicago Sky at 6 p.m. May 14. A reminder that all home games will be played at Xcel Energy Center this season due to previously announced renovations of the Target Center.
Here are five game you can’t miss at Xcel Energy Center in 2017:
May 14 vs. Chicago Sky
This will be the season-opener for the Lynx, taking on the Sky at 6 p.m.
The two teams played against each other three times a season ago. The Lynx won the season series 2-1. The Sky concluded the regular season in second place in the Eastern Conference with a record of 18-16, trailing only New York. Along with Minnesota, Chicago made an appearance as one of the final four teams in the WNBA Playoffs, falling to Los Angeles 3-1 in the semifinals.
July 6 vs. Los Angeles Sparks
This will be a rematch of the 2016 WNBA Finals and arguably the two top teams in the WNBA.
The Lynx, who took first in the Western Conference last season with a record of 28-6, and the Sparks, who finished second in the West at 26-8, played three times in the regular season last year. Minnesota won the season series 2-1. The two teams faced off again in the WNBA Finals, which saw Los Angeles win in five games for its third championship in team history.
The game is also the first and only home nationally televised game this season for the Lynx. It will be aired on ESPN2 at 7 p.m.
July 16 vs. Phoenix Mercury
This will be another playoff rematch for the Lynx, who squared off against the Mercury in the semifinals. Minnesota swept Phoenix 3-0 to advance to the WNBA Finals for the fifth time in six years.
Phoenix, which went 16-18 and finished fourth in the Western Conference last year and fell in the second round of the playoffs, played Minnesota three times during the 2016 regular season. The Lynx held the 3-0 series advantage.
Diana Taurasi and the Mercury will come to town to take on Maya Moore and Lynx at 6 p.m.
July 25 vs. New York Liberty
Outside of the Lynx and Sparks, the Liberty put together the best regular season in the WNBA a season ago. New York concluded with a record of 21-13, which was good enough for first in the Eastern Conference.
After receiving a first-round bye in the playoffs, the Liberty fell 101-94 in the second round to Phoenix, who advanced to take on the Lynx in the semifinals. New York and Minnesota played three games in 2016, in which the Lynx won two of the three games.
The Liberty and Lynx will tipoff at 7 p.m. at Xcel Energy Center.
Sept. 3 vs. Washington Mystics
Minnesota will close out their regular season at home against Washington at 6 p.m.
In three games last season, the Lynx held a 2-1 edge over the Mystics. The game on September 3rd will be the last of three games between the two teams in 2017.
The contest will highlight three players who finished in the top 15 in scoring a season ago. Minnesota’s Maya Moore finished fifth with 19.3 points per game, while Washington’s Tayler Hill placed ninth (15.4) and Emma Meesseman finished 11th (15.2) in the WNBA.