UNCASVILLE, CONN. – The WNBA semifinals are headed back to Target Center for a winner-take-all Game 5 and suddenly the Lynx have a defensive problem.
Up by as many as 10 in the second quarter, the Lynx went cold on offense and couldn’t stop the Sun at the other end in a 92-82 loss to Connecticut at Mohegan Sun Arena on Sunday. In a position to close out the series, instead the Lynx will play host to a game on Tuesday night to decide who plays the top-seeded New York Liberty in the WNBA Finals, which start in New York on Thursday.
Up 10 with 3 minutes, 24 seconds left in the second quarter, the Lynx were outscored 61-41 over the final 23:24 of the game.
One big reason was Harris. Limited in the first three games of the series because of an ankle injury, she returned to the starting lineup, electrifying the Sun offense. She hit seven of 11 shots, including four of five three-pointers, and scored 20 points.
She gave the Sun more ball-handling on top, more depth off the bench, more problems for the Lynx.
And Harris wasn’t alone. She was one of five Sun players who scored in double figures in coach Stephanie White’s very tight six-player rotation. Alyssa Thomas had 18 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists. DeWanna Bonner had 18 points, eight rebounds, four steals and a block.
All that was too much for the Lynx, who shot 18-for-31 in the first half but just 10-for-26 in the second.