Todd Barin
Web Editorial Associate
Twitter
The Lynx barely escaped being upset by the Wings on Sunday afternoon, squeaking out the victory in overtime, 98-97.
Trailing by 15 at the end of the third of the quarter, Dallas was able to claw their way back in the game thanks to some impressive shooting from beyond-the-arc, making 10 shots from range in the contest.
All of Minnesota’s starters performed at a very high level throughout the contest and each player scored more than 13 points in the ballgame.
“Interesting game,” Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve said. “A lot of offense, especially in the first half. They continued with their offense, we stalled a little bit. We tried to execute in-game situations and they didn’t go our way. They made the most of it, it went to overtime, and it was hard fought. There were two teams that really wanted to win that game, we were just pleased to have that last possession and have Seimone (Augustus) get us our 57th and 58th point in the paint. And that was the difference, we win the game with our defense. That’s who we are, and I was really pleased with how it turned out.”
Numbers Game:
16th: Seimone Augustus entered Sunday’s matchup only needing two points to reach 5,000 career points. Well, the veteran guard dropped 14 points and became one of 16 players in WNBA history to reach the milestone.
58: The Lynx used their size extremely well against Dallas, scoring this many points in the paint, which tied a franchise record. The Wings were only able to muster 38 points in the painted area thanks to some solid defensive play from Sylvia Fowles and Rebekkah Brunson.
6: Minnesota did a great job, per usual, sharing the basketball on Sunday afternoon and due to their 17 assists, they had this many players put up double-digit points which tied a club record.
89: Going against a team that ranks second in the league in points allowed, only giving up 76.4 points per game, the Wings did a great job offensively throughout the contest and tallied this many points in just 40 minutes. Dallas made over 45 percent of their shots from the field and made an impressive 10 shots from 3-point range.
“They (Dallas) were great offensively tonight,” Lynx guard Maya Moore said. “They played with a lot of confidence, they hit a lot of shots. We were both shooting a very high field goal percentage in that first quarter and into the second as well. At the end of the game, we had to get a few stops and that’s what we did.”
51: Ranking third in the WNBA in rebounds per game with 35.5 per game, Minnesota must have had their Wheaties this morning as they hauled in this many boards in the contest.
“Those five rebounds in that overtime helped Minnesota,” Wings head coach Fred Williams said. “We shot a high percentage for a long time and there were no rebounds to be had, no second chance points for us. When you get Rebekkah Brunson and Sylvia Fowles in there, they are going to get some boards for you.”