Lynx 92, Sky 87: Ending Preseason with a W

Minnesota gave their home fans something to celebrate as they prepare to embark on their revenge season. Napheesa Collier notched a game-high 26 points while Jessica Shepard nearly triple-doubled in her return.

Game Story

The Minnesota Lynx second and final preseason game may not have been at the top of the menu for many basketball fans, as the Timberwolves were tipping off a playoff game within 30 minutes after the Lynx began. Regardless, there were still some important questions to answer and takeaways to be had as the Lynx are yet to make their final roster cuts.

Minnesota lost their previous game to the same Chicago Sky team four days ago, so they were out for revenge. As far as lineups go, the Lynx were still without the services of Kayla McBride, who has been given time off to rest after her offseason playing abroad in Turkey for Fenerbahçe S.K. To add to this, they were without Alanna Smith tonight due to a sore quad, though it was believed to be more for rest purposes than injury.

Photo by Matt Krohn/Getty Images

This allowed the return of Jessica Shepard to the starting lineup. The 28-year-old vet sat out the previous WNBA preseason due to international obligations, so her nod to start the game boded well for her chances to make the final roster. She immediately picked up right where she left off, showing off her overall basketball IQ. Shepard tallied 8 points, 2 rebounds, and 2 assists in her first quarter stint. Her spatial awareness and unrelenting motor were most notable and surely missed. She ultimately came up just a single rebound and assist away from a triple-double.

Meanwhile, the new look Sky were accurate from deep early. They opened up the game 5 of 6 from distance, led by former Minnesota fan favorite, Rachel Banham, who cashed in three of those treys. They still squandered an early six-point lead due to the Lynx adjusting and attacking in transition off Chicago’s miscues.

Diamond Miller also returned to the court for the first time this preseason as well. She looked a bit too amped in her first stint, overcooking a one-on-zero fastbreak layup and then launching a pass into the Lynx own backcourt for a turnover. However, she did find her rhythm in the second quarter, rattling in a corner triple, then flexed her strength by discarding a defender at the free throw line for another jumper.

The international import from France, Marième Badiane, continued to look impressive. Not known as a three-point shooter, she canned in a pair of them back-to-back without hesitation to balloon the Lynx lead to double-digits. A bit of yakety sax basketball wrapped up the first half with both teams playing a bit too loosely. They headed into the locker room looking at a 48-42 Minnesota advantage.

The end of the first half was just foreshadowing of what was to follow in the final 20 minutes of the game. Chicago was able to rediscover their shooting touch, though much of it was more of an indictment of the porous Lynx defensive rotations. At one point, Karlie Samuelson received a bit of “hard coaching” from Reeve due to a blown X-out.

Minnesota’s third-quarter effort was led by Napheesa Collier, who struggled in the first preseason game. She scored 13 of her game-high 26 points in the period, finally depositing a triple after going 0 for 6 on Tuesday. She finished the night 2 of 3 from distance and a usual 8 of 13 from the field.

The Sky did bridge the final two quarters of the game on an 11-1 run. It forced Reeve to abandon any thoughts of getting an extended look at fringe rotation players. Badiane, Grace Berger, and Ola Kosu all got yanked as Chicago cut the Minnesota lead to just three. Their momentum even allowed them to rubber band back in front to take a three-point lead, thanks to sophomore Kamila Cardoso and her punishing efforts in the paint.

It took nearly five minutes into the final quarter for Minnesota to finally see a field goal drop. Fittingly, it was Collier who broke the seal with a vintage and-1 middy. It was a fun back-and-forth between the two squads, exchanging three straight leads on three perimeter strikes. The early quarter Lynx drought was soundly quenched, as they scored on eight straight possessions later in the fourth.

The Sky couldn’t keep up.

Shepard spent the better half of the quarter getting thwacked by much larger Cardoso in the post, but finally got a clutch stop. She was rewarded with a driving layup on the other end.

Photo by Matt Krohn/Getty Images

Meanwhile, Bridget Carleton also came up clutch, forcing two straight turnovers on Chicago. One by picking up two-time All-WNBA guard Ariel Atkins full court until she sloppily lost it out of bounds. One during a must-score situation by the Sky out of a timeout, when Carleton rotated early in the paint to steal a pass to Cardoso, who had position deep in the paint. She too cashed in a key dagger late as a reward.

The final score was 92-87, as Minnesota gave their home fans a bit of late-game drama and celebration to wrap up preseason. They got to cheer on the traditional mid-court jump between Collier and Courtney Williams. They got to see them do the electric slide.

W.

Quick Hits

• The Lynx really imposed their will in the paint, despite giving up a lot of size. After shooting just 2 free throws in the first half, they finished with 17 in the 2nd. That matched Chicago’s 19 attempts.
• Courtney Williams had a vintage game, posting 17 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists. The mid-range master was in midseason form.
• Diamond Miller had a mixed bag in her return. She still looks like she’s playing just a beat too fast and will need to fix that ASAP. Reeve has been vocal about wanting Miller to be featured more in her third season.
• Grace Berger struggled on a night that she probably couldn’t afford to. Her defense was not a solid as game one, and she made some poor decisions on the offensive end.
• As far as final roster cut predictions, based on tonight’s game, it’s becoming clear that Karlie Samuelson, Jessica Shepard, and Marième Badiane may be locks. That puts the squeeze on other frontcourt players such as Dorka Juhász and Alissi Pili, though the latter looks much improved. Miller may likely still have a spot. That leaves just two spots between the aforementioned front-court players and Berger, Kosu, and Richardson.

• Elizabeth Williams canned a first-half buzzer-beating triple, barely beating the clock by thousandths of a second. She is 0 for 2 from the perimeter in her 10-year WNBA career.
• Courtney Vandersloot sat out tonight’s game after a fruitful return in a Sky uniform earlier this week. This may be the farewell tour for the 36-year-old who has already played 14 seasons.

---

Highlights

Box Score

Lead Tracker

---

Up Next

This wraps it up for the Lynx two-game preseason slate. They’ll get five days off to determine their final roster and prepare for opening day. They’ll visit the number one pick and Minnesota-native Paige Bueckers and the Dallas Wings on Friday, May 16th at 6:30 PM CT.

Canis Hoopus will have you covered with Lynx content all season long as they embark on their revenge tour!

---

Game Highlights