Sun, Lynx meet for first of two matchups this week (May 22, 2017)
Three games into the WNBA season, the Minnesota Lynx are in a familiar position atop the Western Conference standings.
Minnesota (3-0), which has won 20 straight games during the month of May, returns home after two road games to face the Connecticut Sun (0-2) on Tuesday at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.
It's the first of back-to-back matchups for the teams (they meet Friday in Connecticut) this week.
The Sun squandered an 11-point lead in the second half on Saturday in an 81-79 loss to the Indiana Fever in Indianapolis. But the Lynx aren't taking their opponent lightly.
"They are a real challenge to guard," Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve told WNBA.com. "This is a team that is first in second-chance points. ... They just get you twisted. They do a great job in their pick-and-roll options. They know if you cover it a certain way, do this. It's a part of their identity and we are going to be challenged."
The Sun, who were 14-20 in 2016, took two of three last year from the Lynx, who finished a league-best 28-6.
"I know they beat us twice last year," Minnesota guard Lindsay Whalen told the website. "They play really well, they play really quick. They beat us both times out there last year, so we have to come ready to go.
"We know they have a lot of really talented players. ... We'll tip it up tomorrow and we'll play hard."
Minnesota is coming off an 89-87 win over the Dallas Wings on Saturday night.
Center Sylvia Fowles, who followed her 26-point, 10-rebound performance on opening night with 27 points on Saturday, was named WNBA Western Conference Player of the Week.
"I was glad we won, it's obviously what you want going into it," Whalen said after Monday's practice. "We are going to take a look at some things, we have some stuff we can work on, so we'll just continue to work on those things and try to get better as a group.
"Overall for a two-game road trip early in the year, it felt good to get both wins."
Minnesota also beat the Liberty 90-71 last week in New York.
"The New York game was a good game. We shared the ball, we made simple plays, we defended. That was our best game out of the three," Reeve said. "We aren't happy with where we are. We are happy with talking about this, having won three games and sitting here with three wins.
"To get where we are trying to go and to be a great team, we are far from that. We need to close that gap in a hurry."
Sun guard Alex Bentley took some of the blame for Connecticut's narrow loss in Indiana.
"Late in the fourth quarter, we didn't go back to what was working -- going inside," Bentley told The Indianapolis Star after the game. "Our post players should have gotten the ball a lot more, and I put that on myself."
After Friday's rematch, Connecticut plays three straight road games.
