Lynx beat Wings, spoiling Paige Bueckers’ hometown return
Napheesa Collier scored 28 points, including four clutch free throws late in the final minute, and the Minnesota Lynx held off the Dallas Wings 85-81 on Wednesday.
Courtney Williams and Alanna Smith each added 13 points in front of a home opener crowd of 12,772 after the Lynx beat Dallas 99-84 in the opener for both teams on Friday.
For the third straight game, Minnesota (3-0) had 27 assists. Just one Minnesota basket did not come with a helper. The Lynx shot 47.5% from the field after combining for 50.4% in its first two wins.
Arike Ogunbowale led 0-3 Dallas with 21 points. Paige Bueckers, the former Hopkins High School standout and top pick in this year’s WNBA Draft, had 12 on 3-of-11 shooting.
Routinely up by eight or nine points in the second and third quarters, the Lynx could not put away the Wings.
Minnesota led by a game-high 11 points, 63-52, with less than three minutes to play in the third quarter, but Dallas cut the lead to 76-73 on a 3-pointers by Ogunbowale and DiJonai Carrington with 3:41 left in the fourth.
Minnesota missed six of its first eight shots and four of its first six free throws in the frame.
But Williams made a long jumper, Smith had a block, Williams added a pair of free throws, and Natisha Hiedeman one for an 81-73 Lynx lead with 1:32 left.
A 3-point play by Myisha Hines-Allen got the Wings within five. The Lynx committed a 5-second violation on the inbounds play, and Hines-Allen made two free throws with 1:15 left.
Minnesota committed 19 turnovers.
Collier pushed the lead back to five with a couple free throws, but a 3 from Ogunbowale made it a two-point game with 39 seconds left.
Williams grabbed an offensive rebound, Collier made two free throws with 17.5 seconds left and the Lynx could exhale.
Down 15-5 early, coach Cheryl Reeve called the first Lynx timeout. Perhaps a well-timed wake-up call because the Lynx took over at both ends of the court, outscoring the Wings 16-3 over the final six minutes of the quarter for a 21-18 lead. Dallas made six of its first seven shots, but only one of its next 12.
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