Minnesota Lynx win the 2011 WNBA championship – A Look back at their playoffs journey: Part 2
Western Conference Semi-finals Game 2: San Antonio Silver Stars 84 - Minnesota Lynx 75
On September 18 at AT&T Center, the San Antonio Silver Stars bounced back from a defeat in game-1 and tied the Western Conference best-of three semi-finals series with an 84-75 victory over Minnesota Lynx. That defeat turned out
to be the only one, Lynx suffered throughout the post season.
In that game Jia Perkins tallied 24 points, hitting 4 for 6 from three-point range, grabbed six rebounds, dished out five assists and stole the ball four times to lead the Silver Stars. Sophia Young also pitched in with 23 points
while Becky Hammon ended with 18 points, six assists and two steals in the victory.
Seimone Augustus led Minnesota with 24 points on 10 for 21 shooting from the field while Maya Moore punctuated 16 points and grabbed seven rebounds in the loss. Lindsay Whalen also totalled 15 points while Rebekkah Brunson pulled
down a game-high 16 rebounds for Minnesota.
Perkins was aggressive early. She made two three-point plays and then knocked down a jumper to propel the Silver Stars to an 18-14 lead after the first quarter.
Lynx made a cosmetic surge and tied the game at 20 early in the second quarter. However, the San Antonio starters returned back and made it 40-31 with 02:14 remaining in the first half. Minnesota scored six consecutive points in
the last two minutes of the second period and trimmed their deficit to three, 40-37, at halftime.
San Antonio blew the game open in the third quarter and extended their lead to 64-50 by its end. Lynx did not get any closer than six points in the fourth quarter and the Silver Stars walked off their home court with a victory
and a shot at the Conference Finals spot.
Western Conference Semi-finals Game - 3: Minnesota 85 – San Antonio 67
Seimone Augustus topped all scorers with 22 points as Lynx advanced to the Western Conference finals with an 85-67 victory over the Silver Stars in the last game of the best-of-three series on September 20 at Target Center. It
was Minnesota’s first playoff series victory in 13 year history of the franchise.
Taj McWilliams-Franklin posted 16 points; Brunson added 15 points and Maya Moore ended with 14 points in the victory. San Antonio’s forward Young racked up a team-high 17 points while Becky Hammon had 15 points in the loss.
Minnesota made a solid start and carried a 44-36 lead at halftime. They maintained the cushion during most part of the third quarter and Silver Stars were trailing by 62-54 with 02:49 to go in the third quarter. Minnesota pulled
off a four point stretch at that point to push their lead to double figures, 66-54.
The teams entered the last quarter with the scores at 66-56. Minnesota then maintained their double-digit lead throughout the last quarter of the game to book a date with Phoenix Mercury in the conference finals.
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