Minnesota Lynx draw first blood; Beat Atlanta Dream 88-74 in Game - 1 of WNBA Finals
As they have done so many times this season, Rebekkah Brunson and Seimone Augustus combined yet again to steal the show for Minnesota Lynx.
This time though, the occasion was as big as it can get, and the team which Lynx were facing was the two times defending Eastern Conference Champions, Atlanta Dream.
Brunson and Augustus combined to score 48 points as Minnesota, after an off-beat first half, stunned Atlanta Dream 88-74 in the first game of the WNBA finals Sunday on October 2, 2011. About 15,258 basketball fans descended on the Target Centre, second largest in the franchise history, to see their home team take another step towards the glory, which has been elusive for such a long time.
“It was amazing,'' Brunson, who recorded a double-double with a team-high 26 points and 11 rebounds, said of the fired-up crowd. “The city's been excited about this team from the beginning of the season and everybody keeps jumping on and jumping on and we love it. We love the fact we can come in here and play in front of a crowd like this.''
Rebekkah also blocked two shots, ending on a 10 for 15 shooting from the field and 6 for 7 from free throw line. Augustus followed her with 22 points, seven assists and five rebounds. Lindsay Whalen also posted 15 points and dished out six assists; Maya Moore had 11 points, six rebounds, two steals and two blocks while Taj McWilliams-Franklin grabbed 10 rebounds for the league-leading Lynx.
Dream were led once again by Angel McCoughtry. After a 6 point first half, she erupted with a game-high 33 points on the night. The All-Star forward also grabbed five rebounds, stole the ball three times, and blocked two shots. McCoughtry went 10 for 20 from the floor and 11 for 12 from the line.
Lindsey Harding added 20 points and five assists while Iziane Castro Marques contributed 10 points. However, Dream were cold from the floor – a meagre 37.3 percent – and that came to haunt them in the end. They were also thrashed 40-28 in rebounds.
After a close start, Atlanta Dream started to dominate late in the first quarter. They reeled off a 15-4 spurt bridging the last 1:50 of the first period and initial four minutes of the second to open up a 29-17 lead. The Lynx however responded swiftly and by the time the teams went into the locker room, they pulled back within striking distance at 39-36.
Lynx continued to roll early in the third quarter. Brunson started the second half with four points to give Minnesota the lead. What followed was a display of quality shooting from both sides as the game headed into the last ten minutes with the scores tied at 62.
In the fourth quarter, the game turned on its head.
Whalen made a three point play, followed it with a jumper and then let Augustus and Brunson take centre stage as Minnesota raced off to 13 point unanswered run, to take a 75-62 lead.
There was no coming back for Dream after that.
Tags: