Dream matchup for Lynx on the road (May 28, 2018)

Published May. 28, 2018 11:58 p.m. ET

The Minnesota Lynx will look to bounce back from blowing a big lead when the defending champions head to Atlanta to take on the struggling Dream on Tuesday at McCamish Pavilion.

The Lynx stormed out to an 18-point lead in the first quarter against the unbeaten Washington Mystics on Saturday but trailed at halftime. Minnesota regained the lead heading into the fourth quarter but went cold in the final minutes and faded down the stretch in a 90-78 loss.

According to the Minnesota Star Tribune, it was the second largest blown lead in franchise history. Maya Moore had 18 points, and Sylvia Fowles added 17 points for the Lynx (2-2), shot 50 percent from the field in the loss.

"Their bench was amazing," Fowles told reporters after the loss. "They came in and gave them that run that they needed. They brought that energy, they came out (and) they knocked down shots, they got rebounds, they ran the floor. Their bench was who got them back in the game."

The Dream also are coming off a loss. Atlanta dropped its home opener 78-70 to the Dallas Wings on Saturday to fall to 1-2. It was the second loss to Dallas in the first three games for the Dream, but first-year coach Nikki Collen isn't concerned.

"I'm excited about the future of our program," Collen told reporters after the loss to Dallas. "We were in a one-possession game and shot 28 percent."

Collen was hired in the offseason to replace Michael Cooper as Dream coach. She has encouraged her team to push the pace but says she hasn't quite found the right balance yet.

"If there's something we need to get better it's the idea of playing fast but still not rushing the actual shot, because we can run the ball down the floor and still get into action, and still get into second action," Collen said. "It doesn't have to be rush it down the floor and take one of the first shots that's available."

Atlanta's defense forced Dallas into 24 turnovers, had 13 steals and blocked nine shots. The Dream will need a similar defensive effort if they're to break a long losing streak to the Lynx.

Minnesota has owned Atlanta in recent years. The Lynx won all three meetings last season and have won nine straight against Atlanta overall. The Dream's last win over Minnesota came in the 2014 season.