Alexander Shun

Web Editor Associate | Twitter

Minnesota Lynx (3-0) vs. Phoenix Mercury (1-2), 2 PM, CST

WHERE TO WATCH: ESPN 2,

WHERE TO LISTEN: 106.1 BOB FM

Playoff losses can leave a bitter taste in a team’s mouth.

Having lost to the Phoenix Mercury in the Western Conference Finals last season, the Minnesota Lynx are out to avenge their too-soon exit from the playoffs and beat the Mercury on Sunday night.

Coming off a huge blowout of the Seattle Storm, the Lynx are playing with confidence and, more importantly, they’re playing with depth.

In the Lynx’s first two wins, their starters played the majority of the minutes and scored the majority of the team’s points; however, in their last game against the Storm, bench players Tricia Liston and Jennifer O’Neil came in and scored 15 points and 12 points, respectively. The pair also shot a combined 6-of-9 from beyond the arc.

As for the Mercury, their season has started with struggles.

Their All-Star center Brittney Griner is still serving her seven-game suspension for an off-the-court incident and the team is struggling to be consistent; both offensively and defensively.

Forward DeWanna Bonner has been exceptional so far this season, averaging 18.3 points, six rebounds and a little over three assists per game; however she struggled in her last game against the Fever, scoring only 12 points.

Forward Candice Dupree has been the most consistent player for the Mercury thus far, averaging 15.7 points and six rebounds per game thus far, including a 21 point, five rebound performance against the Fever on Friday night.

The Lynx will need to take advantage of the Mercury’s struggles so far, and with an impact player like Griner not playing, the lane will be a lot more open for the Lynx to penetrate.

LAST MEETING

The last time these two teams met was in the Western Conference Finals at the UW Airways Center in Phoenix, and the Mercury easily ran all over the Lynx, winning 96-78 and punching their ticket to the WNBA Finals.

Guard Diana Taurasi led the way for the Mercury, pouring in a game-high 31 points while also grabbing seven rebounds. Center Brittney Griner had a fantastic all-around game scoring 22 points, grabbing six rebounds, and dishing out four assists. She also held Lynx center Janel McCarville scoreless and allowed McCarville to grab only one rebound.

For the Lynx, the story of the game was their defensive struggles.

They simply couldn’t stop Phoenix’s penetration and when they did eventually stop it, the Mercury made their open shots, shooting a scorching 37-of-63 (58.7 percent) from the field.

Guards Seimone Augustus and Lindsay Whalen led the Lynx scoring 21 and 20 points, respectively. Forward Maya Moore struggled shooting late in the game, including going 0-of-5 from beyond the arc. Moore finished with 16 points, five assists and four steals in the loss.

KEY MATCHUP: LINDSAY WHALEN VS. LEILANI MITCHELL

Guard Lindsay Whalen has done an outstanding job leading the Lynx so far this year, averaging a team-high 16.7 points while adding almost five rebounds and a team-high six assists per game. A stat that usually goes unnoticed is free-throws, but Whalen is averaging seven shots from the charity-stripe per game. More importantly, she has only missed one free-throw all year. Whalen is seemingly always at the line when the game hangs in the balance as well. Funny how that happens, huh?

Meanwhile guard Leilani Mitchell has done her best to keep the Mercury afloat during their early struggles. Mitchell is averaging 12.7 points and two assists per game, but more importantly, is not turning the ball over. Mitchell has only two turnovers through the first three games and has been essential to giving the Mercury as many opportunities to score as possible. Especially necessary during games in which the Mercury have struggled to score. Mitchell is also an above-average defender which is going to be fun to watch when a scorer like Whalen is playing opposite her.

These two guards may not be the deciding factors for which team wins the game on Sunday night, but they’ll definitely be the one’s orchestrating their respective offenses, and if one can do just a little bit better than the other, then that player’s team could just come out on top.

PROJECTED STARTERS

Lynx: PG – Whalen, SG – Augustus, SF – Moore, PF – Brunson, C – Dantas

Mercury: PG – Mitchell, SG – Currie, SF – Dupree, PF – Bonner, C – Bass