Lynx Continue to Win, Sky upset Valkyries at the Buzzer, August 21st WNBA Recap
The first game of the night was between the Minnesota Lynx and Washington Mystics. The Mystics started out on a 5-0 run, and the Lynx answered and scored ten straight. Later on in the first quarter, the Lynx led 25-19, and then the Mystics answered and led 26-25 at the end of the first quarter. The Lynx came out and instantly took the lead and went up by 5 in three minutes. Then the lead went up to 8 at the 2:36 mark in the second quarter. The Lynx went up by 10, and then the Mystics hit a three with thirty seconds left.
The Lynx led 49-42 at halftime. The Mystics scrapped back out and only trailed 60-56 at the 4:52 mark in the third quarter. Then the Lynx’s lead was back to 8 within the next minute. Then within the next minute after that, the Lynx only led 64-63. Then the Lynx’s lead was 75-67 at the end of the third quarter.
The Mystics scored 9 instantly to take a 76-75 lead in two minutes. The Lynx slowly pulled away after that, outscoring the Mystics 19-8 and winning 94-84. Olivia Miles led the way with 24 points and seven assists, with Natasha Howard (21 points, seven rebounds, and five assists) and Kayla McBride (18 points) helping out tremendously.
Next, the Golden State Valkyries faced the Chicago Sky. The Sky looked great in the first quarter; they held a 17-4 lead at the 2:19 mark. The Valkyries responded to the early deficit and only trailed 17-12 at the end of the first quarter. By the 6:34 mark in the second quarter, the Sky grew their lead to 31-12. The Valkyries cut into the lead again and trailed only38-26 at halftime. The third quarter belonged to the Valkyries. The Valkyries turned the 12-point deficit into a two-point lead by the end of the third quarter.
The fourth quarter was a very back-and-forth quarter. The Sky went up by four, and then the Valkyries went up by three with 46 seconds left in the game. Then Sydney Taylor stepped up for the Sky. Taylor hit a three to tie the game at 70 and then hit a three with 0.6 seconds left to win the game for the Sky. Natasha Cloud leads the way for the Sky with 17 points, seven rebounds, and four assists. While Kamilla Cardoso (14 points and ten rebounds), Sydney Taylor (14 points), and Courtney Vandersloot (12 points and five assists) came up huge for the Sky.
The final game of the night was between the Toronto Tempo and Portland Fire. The Fire took a quick 16-6 lead, and the lead stayed steady for the Fire. The Fire led 24-16 at the end of the first quarter. A few quick buckets from Kiki Rice and Isabelle Harrison got the Fire lead to 30-25 by the six-minute mark in the second. The Tempo had the score down to 36-34 at the 3:59 mark. And then they stayed positive and got the score tied at 44 at halftime.
The third quarter saw the score stay close halfway through the quarter. Then we saw the Tempo gaining some momentum and taking a 66-59 lead into the fourth quarter. We saw the Tempo hold the lead for six and a half minutes, and then the Fire took the lead at the 3:28 mark. Two buckets from Kiki Rice and Isabelle Harrison saw the Tempo take the lead, hold onto the lead, and win 82-79. I mentioned them both multiple times, but Isabelle Harrison (25 points and ten rebounds) and Kiki Rice (19 points and four assists) led the way for the Tempo.
Tonight brings us a showdown between the Indiana Fever and the New York Liberty at 7 pm EST. Then at 9 pm EST, the Connecticut Sun play the Los Angeles Sparks. Then, to close the night, the Atlanta Dream play at the Phoenix Mercury at 10 pm EST.
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