Mitchell Hansen
Web Editorial Associate
Twitter
The Minnesota Lynx are nearing the end of the 2017 regular season, entering the week with six games remaining.
Minnesota remains in the top spot in the WNBA standings, holding a 22-6 record and a 1.5-game lead over the Los Angeles Sparks (21-8) for first place in the league.
The upcoming week will feature one home game before the Lynx will hit the road for their largest road trip of the season that will feature three games in an eight-day span.
Let’s take a look ahead at the upcoming week for Minnesota:
Tuesday, Aug. 22
Minnesota Lynx vs. Phoenix Mercury
7 p.m., Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul
Season Series: Minnesota leads 3-0
The first game of the week for the Lynx will come against the Phoenix Mercury at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul.
So far this season, Minnesota has taken care of business against Phoenix, holding a 3-0 season series advantage. Those of those games were played on the road in Phoenix, while the last game on July 16 was played in St. Paul.
In those three wins, the Lynx have won by an average of 13.3 points, with their largest win coming in an 88-71 victory on July 14.
Two opposing players to watch in the game will be Mercury center Brittney Griner and guard Diana Taurasi.
Griner, an MVP candidate who returned a few week ago after being sidelined for nearly a month with a knee and ankle injury, is averaging 21.5 points (best in WNBA), 8.1 rebounds (8th in WNBA) and 2.3 blocks (best in WNBA) per game this season.
Taurasi, in her 13th WNBA season, is averaging 18.9 points (6th in WNBA), 2.8 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game this season.
The Lynx look to complete the season series sweep of the Mercury at 7 p.m. Tuesday. The game will be aired on Fox Sports North Plus, NBATV, 106.1 BOB FM and TuneIn Radio.
To get tickets, head to LynxBasketball.com/tickets.
Friday, Aug. 25
Minnesota Lynx at San Antonio Stars
Friday at 7 p.m., AT&T Center in San Antonio
Season Series: Minnesota leads 2-0
The Lynx and Stars will play in the third and final matchup during the regular season Friday night.
The game Friday night will be the first game of a three-game road trip in eight days for Minnesota, which is the longest road trip of the 2017 regular season.
A few opposing players to keep an eye on in the game will be the young San Antonio guards.
Fourth-year guard Kayla McBride leads the Stars in points per game with 15.7. She is also averaging 3.9 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.2 steals per game.
Second-year guard Moriah Jefferson is averaging 9.1 points, 4.4 assists, 1.8 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game this season.
And finally, rookie guard and 2016 No. 1 overall pick Kelsey Plum is averaging eight points, 3.3 assists and 1.8 rebounds per game this season, primarily coming off of the bench for San Antonio.
The Lynx aim to complete the 3-0 season series sweep of the Stars at 7 p.m. Friday night. Tune into the game live on Twitter or with John Focke on 106.1 BOB FM and TuneIn Radio.
Sunday, Aug. 27
Minnesota Lynx at Los Angeles Sparks
6 p.m., STAPLES Center in Los Angeles
Season Series: Tied 1-1
Sunday’s showdown between Minnesota and Los Angeles will be the season series decider.
The top two teams in the WNBA will battle it out on STAPLES Center in Los Angeles with the season series tied 1-1.
The Lynx won the first matchup on July 6 in St. Paul, while the Sparks evened the series with a win on Aug. 11 in St. Paul.
Two opposing players and possible MVP candidates to look out for on Sunday will be Sparks’ Nneka Ogwumike and Candace Parker.
Ogwumike has led Los Angeles this season with 19.1 points (5th in WNBA), 7.6 rebounds (9th in WNBA) and two assists per game.
Parker, who will once again go up against MVP front-runner Lynx center Sylvia Fowles in the game, is averaging 17.2 points (9th in WNBA), 8.5 rebounds (7th in WNBA) and 4.3 assists (9th in WNBA) a game this season.
Sunday’s game will begin at 6 p.m. and will be aired on ESPN 2, 106.1 BOB FM and TuneIn Radio.