The Connecticut Sun have wrested home-court advantage from the Minnesota Lynx in the WNBA semifinals, but going up 2-0 won't be easy. The Sun earned a narrow 73-70 win over the Lynx in Game 1 on Sunday, limiting Minnesota superstar Napheesa Collier to 19 points on 7 of 16 shooting and getting a 20-point effort from midseason pickup Marina Mabrey.
Sun's Keys to Victory
Game 2 is scheduled for 9:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday night in Minnesota, and The Lynx -- who haven't lost back-to-back games since mid-July -- almost certainly will make adjustments. So, what does Connecticut need to do to emerge with the victory?
NBC Connecticut sports reporter Gabby Lucivero joined NBC Boston's Hannah Donnelly on the latest On Her Mark podcast to share her three keys to a Sun victory in Game 2. Lucivero's first key? Get DeWanna Bonner going offensively.
"I do think Bonner needs to have a better shooting night," Lucivero told Donnelly. "I think DB would say she needs to have a better shooting night. Because we're going see to Minnesota step it up. (Collier) is going to be looking at that box score going, 'That's not acceptable for me.' So, we're gonna see those two things get ratcheted up."
Bonner scored just 10 points on 4 of 17 shooting (2 of 8 from 3-point range) in Game 1, but Connecticut's strong defense helped power the victory. Lucivero's second key revolved around slowing down Collier, who scored a whopping 80 points combined in the Lynx's 2-0 sweep of the Phoenix Mercury in Round 1.
"I think that they need to figure out a way to be able to take (Collier) out of the game without needing necessarily a four-player rotation," Lucivero said. "So, No. 2 is, what's the solution for (Collier) knowing she's going to be coming in expecting to play better than she did in Game 1?"
Lucivero's third key focused on Sun guard DiJonai Carrington, who recently was named the WNBA's Most Improved Player. Alyssa Thomas, Bonner and Mabrey are Connecticut's three most potent offensive players, so if Carrington -- who scored 13 points in Game 1 -- can make significant contributions on that end, that's a major X-factor for the Sun.
"I'm gonna take Alyssa Thomas out of the keys to the game because Alyssa Thomas is the key to the game," Lucivero said. "So, I wanna see more -- it feels wrong to say 'more' from DiJonai Carrington, because she has done everything -- but we haven't really talked about her that much in this, and she has been such a huge piece of why the Sun are here and I've loved her trajectory."
"... Key three is more new-look DiJonai. Just more of it. I think she played great in Game 1 -- now just give us more."
The Lynx Bounce Back
The Minnesota Lynx evened up the series with a 77-70 victory over the Connecticut Sun, winning at home in Game 2. Courtney Williams led the Lynx with 17 points, while Napheesa Collier added nine points and 12 rebounds. The Lynx were able to contain Alyssa Thomas, who had been a driving force in the Sun's Game 1 win.
Sun's Road Challenge
Despite the loss, The Sun have a chance to close out the series at home with two wins, and odds are in their favor. The Sun have been here before. In fact, they've made a habit of stealing Game 1 on the road. Not counting the 2020 season, when COVID forced the playoffs into a bubble, this is the sixth time they've started a series by taking a game on their opponent's floor.
They did it in last year's semifinals against the New York Liberty. They did it the year before in the semifinals against the Chicago Sky. Against the Sky, they earned every bit of a messy series-opening win, then immediately reset, knowing they were still in for a long series. It ended up going five games before the Sun finally put the Sky away.
The Liberty, on the other hand, didn't take kindly to losing on their home floor. They snapped back with a win at Barclays Center, then took the next two games at Mohegan Sun and punched their ticket to the Finals.
The Lynx have lost Game 1 on their home floor six times. The most recent could have been the most painful had they not recovered. In Game 1 of the 2017 Finals, Chelsea Gray drilled a 14-foot elbow pull-up with two seconds left as the Los Angeles Sparks stunned the Lynx. But Minnesota regrouped, buckled up for a series that went five games, and ultimately won the series and the title.
The Sun don't want to go back to Minnesota for a Game 5, but they're equipped. They were 14-6 on the road this season, tied with the Lynx and Aces for the second-best road record in the league.
Home-Court Advantage in the Playoffs
In regular-season WNBA games, home teams win 58.9 percent of their games. But in the playoffs, that ticks up to 63.4. There's an edge to being on your home floor, particularly in the playoffs.
But at this stage, it's not so much where the teams are playing as how they play.
"Whether you're at home or whether you're on the road, I'm not really sure that it matters," White said. "I think that our players have been around enough, you know, we're both going to be defensive-minded."
"At the end of the day, you see the shooting percentages is what it comes down to. So I don't know that it really matters in a series like this."
The Importance of the Next Game
The Sun are facing a tough challenge on the road, but they have the talent and experience to overcome it. If they can get Bonner going offensively, limit Collier's scoring, and get continued contributions from Carrington, they'll be in good shape to close out the series at home.
The WNBA playoffs are a marathon, not a sprint, and these two teams are in for a long and exciting series. Fans can expect a tight, intense battle, with both teams battling for every possession. The Sun will need to bring their best game in Game 2 to avoid going back to Minnesota for a decisive Game 5.
