Alexander Shun

Web Editor Associate | @alexpshun 

2015 WNBA FINALS | SERIES TIED 0-0

Minnesota Lynx (0-0) vs. Indiana Fever (0-0) | 2:00 P.M. CT

WHERE TO WATCH: ABC

WHERE TO LISTEN: 106.1 BOB FM

Today, for the fourth time in five years, the Minnesota Lynx will play in game one of the WNBA Finals. Their opponent this year: the Indiana Fever.

After winning both the regular season-match-ups against the Fever by an average of 12.5 points and a combined score of 159-134, it would seem as though the Lynx would be in for a rather easy Finals match-up; not so fast though.

These two teams never faced each other in the regular season with both rosters fully healthy. The Lynx were without center Sylvia Fowles and guard Renee Mongomery in their first meeting and were then without guards Lindsay Whalen and Seimone Augustus for the second. As for Indiana, they were without forward Tamika Catchings in their first meeting and were then without guard Briann January for the second. Such absences make this Finals’ series even more intriguing now that we’ll finally get to see these teams clash with fully healthy rosters. Not that it wasn’t already extremely intriguing.

This Finals match-up is a rematch of the 2012 WNBA Finals during which the Fever defeated the Lynx 3-1 and captured the title. The similarities between that 2012 series and the one beginning today are…well, just flat out scary.

In 2012, Minnesota entered the Finals having home-court advantage, just like they do this year. They also entered the 2012 series having swept the Fever in the regular-season series 2-0, exactly like they did this year. Finally, both teams are returning the same core of players that they had in 2012 (MN: Whalen, Augustus, Moore, Brunson; IND: Catchings, January, Larkins, Pohlen, Zellous). Coincidence?

“We have some great players and they have some great players,” Lynx guard Lindsay Whalen said. “I think it just shows that when you come together and you’re connected as a team, you can do really good things. When you have great leadership and great coaches that, if you put it all together on the floor, as a team, you can do great things. There are a lot of great players on both sides of the ball that a lot of people respect and that’s a big reason why both of these teams are here”

The Lynx were the number one seed in the Western Conference and punched their ticket here to the Finals by defeating the Los Angeles Sparks in three games in the Western Conference Semifinals and then sweeping their rival Phoenix Mercury in two games in the Western Conference Finals. The Lynx will now appear in their fourth Finals in five seasons and look to grab their third championship in that same span.

For the Fever, they claimed the third spot in the Eastern Conference and had to beat the Chicago Sky in the Eastern Conference Semifinals and did so in three games before going to take on the top seeded New York Liberty. The Liberty claimed the best record in the league in the regular season and was picked to beat Indiana in the Eastern Conference Finals; the Fever had other ideas. After losing game one, the Fever claimed the final two games of the series, knocking off the Liberty and pushing themselves to the Finals.

Today, these two teams face-off in game one and, put simply, this series is sure to have a little bit of everything; multiple All-Stars and all-time greats on both teams, revenge for the Lynx, an underdog story for the Fever, sharpshooters for the Fever and great post players for the Lynx.

Fans could not have hoped for a better match-up, and now, they get to sit back and enjoy what is sure to be one truly fantastic Finals series.

LAST MEETING

The Lynx and Fever met twice during the regular-season; however, given the state of their respective teams during the meetings, I don’t think the match-ups are indicative of how this series is going to be. I’ll quick recap the regular-season meetings, just note that there were many players out for each team during each of the meetings so fans shouldn’t give much weight to the outcomes, especially since the Finals are a completely different entity in itself.

In their first meeting, the Lynx and Fever met down in Indiana and the Lynx came away victorious, defeating the Fever 78-69. Whalen led Minnesota scoring a team-high 17 points while adding four rebounds and five assists. Forwards Maya Moore and Rebekah Brunson each added 16 points and 10 rebounds in helping guide the Lynx to a win. Minnesota notched four scorers in double-figures and managed to win despite shooting a lower percentage than Indiana.

Guard Marissa Coleman led Indiana with a team-high 16 points while forward Natalie Achonwa added 14 points on 7-of-11 shooting. Guard Briann January pitched in 11 points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals in the Fever’s loss.

Their second meeting took place in Minnesota on September 4 and the Lynx, once again, came away with the win, knocking off the Fever 81-65. Center Sylvia Fowles, after missing the first meeting with the Fever, led Minnesota scoring a game-high 18 points while grabbing a game-high 11 rebounds while adding two steals and two blocked shots. Brunson had another big game against Indiana, notching another double-double and finishing the game with 14 points and 11 rebounds. The Lynx had all five starters score in double-figures and shot an astounding 34-of-64 (53.1 percent) from the floor, including 8-of-18 (44.4 percent) from beyond the arc.

The Fever were once again led by Coleman who finished with a team-high 16 points while forward Tamika Catchings, who missed the first meeting due to a right knee injury, added 10 points, nine rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot in the loss.

KEY MATCH-UP: MAYA MOORE VS. TAMIKA CATCHINGS

After an incredible 40-point performance to send her team to the Finals, Maya Moore will already have the spotlight firmly on her and for a variety of reasons. Moore is widely considered one of the greatest, if not the greatest, player in the WNBA and will be going for the third championship of her career, an incredible mark given how young she is. This postseason, Moore has been nothing short of unstoppable for Minnesota and is perhaps the biggest reason that they’re in the Finals this year.

With so many injuries and roster shakeups throughout the season, Moore was the one constant for the Lynx, giving them a player that they relied on and provided them leadership and stability in a time of major unrest for Minnesota. In the playoffs thus far, Moore is averaging 27.8 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 2.6 steals; very impressive numbers indeed. With a third championship on the line, the Lynx will rely heavily on the big-play ability of Moore. They’re going to rely even more on her defense, given that Moore will most times be tasked with stopping Indiana’s all-time great forward Tamika Catchings.

Catchings, a former champion, former league MVP, 10-time All-Star and five-time Defensive Player of the Year, has been spectacular in the playoffs for Indiana, including a great set of games in the Western Conference Finals to close out the top seeded New York Liberty. In the playoffs thus far, Catchings is averaging 19.7 points, six rebounds and 2.8 assists while playing as though her 36-year old body hadn’t aged a day. Catchings has been nothings short of solid all season long and continues to be a tough cover for even the stoutest of defenders. The Fever will go as far as Catchings can carry them, but if the Lynx hope to claim another title and avoid a repeat of the 2012 Finals, Catchings will be the player they will need to shut down.

PROJECTED STARTERS

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

Fever: PG – January, SG – Johnson, SF – Catchings, PF – Coleman, C – Larkins