Alexander Shun

Web Editor Associate | @alexpshun

2015 WNBA FINALS | INDIANA LEADS SERIES 1-0

MINNESOTA LYNX (69) – INDIANA FEVER (75)

It’s the WNBA Finals. It’s a series between the alleged two best two teams in the league; winning any game in this series is going to be tough and it’s going to take a little something from every player on the team’s roster. Unfortunately, the Indiana Fever got a little more than the Minnesota Lynx and they defeated the Lynx 75-69, stealing game one on the road and giving themselves a 1-0 lead in this best-of-five game series.

Lynx forward Maya Moore led all scorers with 27 points while notching a double-double and grabbing 12 rebounds as well. Center Sylvia Fowles finished the afternoon with a double-double as well, registering 21 points and 11 rebounds on what was collectively a rather quiet day on offense for Minnesota. Guard Seimone Augustus added nine points on 3-of-11 (27 percent) shooting but that’s about where the scoring ends. Guards Anna Cruz and Lindsay Whalen combined for just eight points on 3-of-10 (30 percent) shooting.

“Not surprising that Indiana came in here ready to steal the game,” Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve said. “Both Lindsay and Seimone have to help us more offensively. They didn’t get the job done, either one of them, and we need more from them.”

The Fever had no such problems getting a balanced offensive attack, having five players score in double-figures, including guard Briann January who led Indiana with 19 points.

“I think she played great,” Reeve said. “What Briann does a great job of is reading what’s open.”

Forward Marissa Coleman contributed 16 points for Indiana and guard Shavonte Zellous came off the bench to score 10 points in Indiana’s game one victory.

The Lynx were hurt early on by turnovers, committing seven in the first quarter alone, but they were done in on the Fever’s second-chance points today. Indiana finished with 22 second-chance points after collecting 16 offensive rebounds, many of which led to open three-point shots which really hurt Minnesota’s comeback attempts down the stretch.

“You force a team into a bad shot, air-ball, you don’t get possession. I can think of at least five possessions where goofy stuff like that happened,” said Reeve. “We shot 42 percent, they shot 36 percent. We shot 23 free-throws, they shot 16. How do you lose that game?”

The first quarter was a mix of sloppy play and tough defense for both teams. Despite shooting just 5-of-16 (31.3 percent), committing seven turnovers and scoring just 10 points, the Lynx were able to hold the Fever to just 4-of-19 (21.1 percent) shooting while committing four turnovers and scoring just 10 points themselves. Moore and  guard Anna Cruz both notched four points in the first quarter for Minnesota while playing spectacular defense to slow Indiana. The Fever had five players get a bucket in the quarter while playing great team defense and forcing the Lynx to make bad decisions. Both teams played much cleaner in the second quarter.

In the second, Moore did a little of everything for Minnesota, registering 11 points and three rebounds while playing great help defense on multiple occasions that led to Fever turnovers and Lynx points. Moore finished the half with 15 points, six rebounds, one steal and one blocked shot. Fowles also came up huge for the Lynx in the second. After committing four turnovers in the first quarter, Fowles committed just one in the second while adding five points and finishing the half with seven points, eight rebounds, one steal and two blocked shots. Guard Brianna January and forward Marissa Coleman each scored seven points in the quarter for Indiana, including a huge three-pointer from each of them. At half, January had nine points and three assists and Coleman had added nine points of her own to send Indiana into the half leading Minnesota 35-29.

In the third quarter, the Fever made their run and built a lead…well, a little at least. Indiana took advantage of some Lynx mistakes and a slew of missed shots. The Lynx managed to shoot just 6-of-16 (37.5 percent) in the quarter while the Fever shot 6-of-14 (42.8 percent) and outscored Minnesota 19-18 in the quarter, pushing their lead to 54-47 after three. Minnesota needed to make a run in the fourth quarter and did so.

After scoring the first four points of the quarter, Minnesota had cut the Fever lead to just three with 8:51 remaining in the game. The Fever didn’t flinch, they just continued to build upon their lead, pushing it back to six after guard Shenise Johnson drove to the rim and got a lay-up to put the Fever up 61-55; the Lynx would respond. They quickly went on a 7-0 run, recapturing the lead, igniting the Target Center crowd and forcing Indiana to take a timeout. After the timeout, Coleman nailed a three-pointer to give Indiana the lead at 64-62; the Lynx would get no closer.

They managed to keep it a one-possession game almost entirely through the fourth quarter, but missed free-throws and timely turnovers eventually sunk Minnesota, sending them to a 75-69 defeat and a 1-0 series hole against a resilient Indiana team.

LEADER OF THE PACK: MAYA MOORE

What can be said about Maya Moore that hasn’t already been said? Not much. Moore led Minnesota once again, finishing with 27 points, 12 rebounds, two steals and three blocked shots while playing all 40 minutes tonight.

It wasn’t always easy for Moore, evidenced by her 10-of-22 (45 percent) shooting on the afternoon, but she got big buckets when her team needed them most, including scoring 11 points in the second quarter alone, keeping the game close and not allowing the Fever to run away with it.

Of course, no player is perfect, and after the game Moore couldn’t help but point out the uncharacteristic missed free-throws that she had both early and late in the game, something she says she’ll fix and clean up heading into game two. Even with six turnovers, Moore played a great game and kept her team in it until the final moments. Moore will need a lot more help carrying the scoring load though if the Lynx hope to win game two.

PLAY OF THE GAME

The play of the game is actually a culmination of a few big plays.

Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve made note after the game as to how many three-point shots Indiana made when they were given second-chances (for the record, I can recall at least three). Those three (at least) big buckets wrote the story for how the game went.

The worst instance came midway through the fourth quarter after an Indiana timeout. The Lynx had just recaptured the lead and the crowd was roaring with excitement. It appeared as though Minnesota was ready to turn on the jets and pull away from Indiana; the Fever had other ideas. After a missed three-pointer by Coleman, January grabbed the offensive rebound and threw it back out to her for another shot; she didn’t miss the second time. The three gave the Fever a 64-62 lead and Indiana would not relinquish the lead for the rest of the game.

QUOTEABLE

“We didn’t play well enough to win, to be honest with you. You gotta play way better to have a shot at winning a championship and we just didn’t do that today,” Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve, speaking about her team’s performance in game one of the WNBA Finals.

UP NEXT

The Minnesota Lynx will host the Indiana Fever on Tuesday night at Target Center for game two of the 2015 WNBA Finals. The Fever lead the series 1-0. The game is set to begin at 7:00 P.M. CT.