Two of the top five teams in the WNBA battle Sunday afternoon as the league-leading Minnesota Lynx play in Atlanta against the Dream, who are currently fifth in the standings.
Minnesota (31-8) and Atlanta (25-14) are meeting for the third time this year. The Dream won the first game by a 91-90 score in the season opener, but the Lynx prevailed 96-81 on May 27.
The Lynx have won their last eight on the road and are 17-2 away from home this season.
Olivia Miles has spearheaded Minnesota’s offense, averaging 19.7 points per contest while dishing out 6.1 assists per outing. She is a front runner for rookie of the year honors and could very well be considered an MVP candidate as well.
But Miles and the Lynx didn’t get a win on Monday, falling 80-66 to Golden State as a six-game winning streak came to an end. It was a tough night for Miles, who scored only eight points and turned the ball over four times.
That isn’t necessarily a bad thing, according to head coach Cheryl Reeve.
“I want games like this for Liv as a rookie,” Reeve told reporters. “We need games like this, so that there is learning that happens. There’s disappointment maybe she is feeling for sure. She needs that. We need that. In my mind it’s stuff that makes us a better team.”
Atlanta is coming off a 101-83 loss to Portland on Friday and is 7-3 in its last 10 games. Rhyne Howard scored 26 points and is averaging 18.4 points per contest.
Angel Reese is averaging 16.1 points and 12.5 rebounds per contest.
Against Portland, she scored 16 points and pulled down 16 boards, tying a single-season double-double record with her 28th of the year.
While Atlanta fell short on Friday, it’s on to the next game.
“We can’t get it back. The game is over now. There’s nothing further we can do. But we have the No. 1 team coming in in 48 hours, so you really have no choice but to move on to the next one,” Howard said.
–Field Level Media
