The Minnesota Lynx and Connecticut Sun met three times in the regular season with no game decided by more than five points.

Sunday’s contest was no different, other than the stakes are much higher.

Alyssa Thomas made a pair of baskets in the final minute and Connecticut beat the Lynx 73-70 in the first game of a best-of-five WNBA semifinal. Game 2 is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. Tuesday back at Target Center.

In the semifinals for the sixth straight season, Connecticut had four players finish with double-figure scoring led by Marina Mabrey with 20 points. Thomas had 17 points and 10 rebounds. The Sun have won three of four meetings between the teams this season.

Napheesa Collier led the Lynx with 19 points and nine rebounds. Bridget Carleton scored 17 points, including a trio of treys, and Kayla McBride added 12 points.

Minnesota led by five entering the fourth quarter but missed its first seven shots of the final quarter.

The Lynx were outscored 16-8 in the final 10 minutes, making just 4 of 18 shots in the frame — 0  of 5 from 3-point territory — and losing for just the fourth time in 32 games they’ve led this season going into the fourth.

Minnesota trailed 69-68 when the Sun took a timeout with 3:39 to play. Neither team put up points thereafter until Thomas scored on a drive with 53.8 seconds left for a three-point Sun lead.

Collier converted a feed from Alanna Smith to get the Lynx within one with 33.9 seconds left, but Thomas sank a jumper from the free-throw line with 11.7 seconds left.

Out of a timeout, a desperation 3-pointer by Collier hit outside iron.

Minnesota tried to create some breathing room with an 11-3 to close the third, including six points from Collier, a baseline drive by Myisha Hines-Allen and a Courtney Williams 3, that resulted in a 62-57 lead with 10 minutes to go.

Boosted by a 12-3 run late in the first, Connecticut took an early 23-16 lead. Collier and Carleton each had seven points on a combined 5-for-8 shooting in the frame and the rest of the Lynx lineup made just one of seven shots.

But the home team warmed up midway through the second. Carleton had a pair of 3s, five players scored, and Williams had a couple pretty feeds for layups during a 15-0 run that resulted in a 35-29 Lynx lead. Connecticut answered with a 10-0 run that included four Minnesota turnovers en route to a 42-38 halftime lead.

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