Lynx cruise past Sun for 2-1 lead in WNBA semifinals

UNCASVILLE, CONN. – With just over three minutes remaining in Friday's game at Mohegan Sun Arena, a 14-point Lynx lead had been trimmed to eight.

And then Napheesa Collier happened.

First: A 90-81 victory over Connecticut put the Lynx up 2-1 in this best-of five WNBA semifinal series. A victory here Sunday would put the Lynx into the WNBA Finals for the first time since 2017. After a Game 1 loss at home — more on Reeve's reaction to that game later — the Lynx have won two straight.

But back to Collier.

Out of a timeout the Lynx had a play called, but it went awry. No matter. Collier ducked in, took a pass from Alanna Smith and scored. At the other end she stole the ball from Marina Mabrey. Seconds later Collier kicked the ball out to Smith for a three-pointer.

"That is the epitome of how Phee played today," Reeve said. "Complete game. She knew she'd score today. No one was more frustrated than Phee after the first two games."

Phee made just 10 of 30 shots over the first two games. In Game 2 she did everything — rebounding, defending, assisting — but score at her usual rate.

Friday she just did just about everything.

She scored 26 points, making 11 of 19 shots. She grabbed 11 rebounds and had three assists, making her the first player in team history to have multiple 25-point, 10-rebound performances in the playoffs. It was, Collier said, the law of averages.

"I think they were normal shots I usually make," the former University of Connecticut standout said of her shooting in the first two games of the series. "In crunch time I had to be aggressive, especially in the paint at one end and in coverage on the other. I knew I had to get up and pressure."

The Lynx put the pressure on the Sun and put themselves on the cusp of a return to the Finals by finding their offensive rhythm without losing their defensive resolve.

They shot 57.4%, which is rather incredible considering they went 5-for-15 on threes. That means the Lynx hit 30 of 46 two-point shots. Four of five starters were in double figures, eight players scored four points or more, the Lynx bench outscored Sun reserves 16-4.

The Sun? they shot 41.1% and — with Mabrey going 1-for-11 from behind the arc — made only three of 20 three-pointers.

The Lynx have won two in a row since opening the series with a loss. A report surfaced Friday that Reeve had confronted Sun players for excessive celebration after that game. Asked about it Friday, Reeve chalked it up to competitive coaches and players in a competitive playoff series. Courtney Williams — Robin to Collier's Batman on Friday — said she didn't even see it. Connecticut coach Stephanie White shrugged it off. Neither Alyssa Thomas (13 points, nine rebounds, seven assists) nor Brionna Jones (21 points) commented.

The Lynx let their play do the talking. Especially Collier.

"I was taking my time," she said. "I put in the work. I had missed shots I would normally make. I knew they were going to fall. I just had to stay aggressive."

Before the game Reeve predicted Collier would score. Afterward, to Collier? "She said, 'thanks for having my back.' "

Reeve said Friday — and had said it before — that this is a Lynx team that lets her sleep at night. The team solves problems. They always do, she said.

They did Friday. After Collier helped push the lead back to 13, the Sun whittled it down to seven with 1:20 left, but Williams dribbled to the mid-range and scored.

BOXSCORE: Lynx 90, Sun 81

Afterward Thomas said her team didn't come to compete. White said the Lynx were able to do whatever they wanted on the offensive end. "We got out-played, out-executed, out-coached," she said.

And out-Pheed.

Don't sleep on the Lynx. "We have a way of knowing how to trust each other," Williams said. "We keep doing what we do. We know we're capable. It doesn't matter what other people are saying, we knew we have something special here."