LOS ANGELES — Riquna Williams hit four 3-pointers and finished with 15 points to help the Los Angeles Sparks beat Minnesota 77-68 on Sunday, ruining the Lynx’s chance of hosting a playoff game in the first round.
Instead, the Lynx have a Wednesday date at Seattle for a single-elimination game.
The Lynx (18-16), who had a five-game winning streak snapped, will be the No. 7 seed because of their loss and Seattle’s win over Dallas.
Minnesota has lost three in a row against the Storm overall and four straight in Seattle.
The Sparks have a first-round bye in the playoffs and will host the worst remaining seed in the second round.
Los Angeles (22-12), which won the WNBA title in 2016 and lost to Minnesota in the 2017 Finals, has won three in a row overall and 14 straight home games.
Napheesa Collier led Minnesota with 16 points Sunday and tied her career high with 11 rebounds.
FOWLES EXTENSION
Earlier Sunday, the Lynx announced they had signed center Sylvia Fowles to a multi-year contract extension.
Per team policy, terms of the deal were not released.
In her 12th WNBA season, Fowles was named to her sixth All-Star Game and went into Sunday’s game averaging 13.7 points and 8.9 rebounds.
Fowles had 12 points and nine rebounds in the loss to the Sparks.
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