Mitchell Hansen
Web Editorial Associate
Twitter
The Minnesota Lynx returned to practice back home at Williams Arena on Tuesday morning while preparing for the biggest game of the season.
The Lynx host the Los Angeles Sparks in a winner-take-all Game 5 of the WNBA Finals on Wednesday night in Minneapolis.
“You maybe don’t realize the size of the moment until you get away from basketball. When I go walk around town and see people and see the excitement. . . We’re just looking forward to the game to get started,” Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve said after practice Tuesday. “As a competitor, there’s nothing better than this. There’s nothing better than trying to prepare your team for the battle. It brings out the best in you.”
So far this series, each team has come out and won one game on the road and one at home. But Minnesota is focused on breaking that tie and taking the series-deciding game in front of its home crowd.
“The energy is going to be great in the Barn. We are going to come out and try to do what we always do,” Seimone Augustus said. “Great players have to make great plays all over the floor. From the guard position to the post position. Game 5, you probably have a wrinkle here and there, but you have to do what you do.”
For the Lynx, this is the moment and game they’ve worked so hard for all season long. All the practices, shootarounds and games during the season has prepared them for this moment.
“It’s a little different feeling than other games, but that’s why you have your routines and everything we do the day before to prepare,” Lindsay Whalen said. “You just try and get in that routine and that mindset of focusing on what you can do and try to enjoy it.”
It all comes down to Wednesday. Game 5 of the WNBA Finals between the Lynx and Sparks will tip off at 7 p.m. (CT) from Williams Arena in Minneapolis. The game will be aired on ESPN, 106.1 BOB FM, TuneIn Radio and the Lynx App.
“At this point in the year, you just have to be confident in your preparation all season and what you’ve done going into this moment,” Maya Moore said. “This is what we’ve prepared for, that’s our mindset. It’s the way it should be when you have the two best teams in the league playing against each other. It’s going to come down to the little things.”
Are you ready, Lynx fans?