The Minnesota Lynx caught fire shooting the ball in the second quarter and never looked back in a dominant 101-81 win over the Washington Mystics in Game 1 of their best-of-five semifinals matchup. Maya Moore, Sylvia Fowles, and Seimone Augustus were too much for a Washington team making its deepest playoff appearance in 15 years. The Mystics’ inexperience was obvious, especially going up against a team that has made five of the last six Finals. This game wasn’t even close.
3 things we learned from the Lynx dominant Game 1 win over the Mystics
Sylvia Fowles is too much for Washington.
Photo by Harry How/Getty Images
A number of the Mystics’ mistakes were in part their own, and the Lynx didn’t miss all game. That shouldn’t happen again, but Minnesota has made it clear that Washington needs to be close to perfect it wants to pull off this upset.
Here’s what we learned after 40 minutes of play between these two teams:
- Washington needs a new game plan for Sylvia Fowles.
Sylvia Fowles ruined the Mystics for 16 first-half points despite being the focal point of Washington’s defensive efforts. She was double-teamed for most of the night by Tianna Hawkins, Krystal Thomas, Emma Meesseman and Elena Delle Donne with Washington missing a true 6’6 center to play her one-on-one. It didn’t matter.
Fowles went off for 18 points on 8-of-13 shooting, and when she drew too much attention, Moore, Rebekkah Brunson, and most of all, Augustus, were given open looks they didn’t miss. It looked too easy.
Minnesota’s roster is too stacked to sag off anyone who surrounds Fowles. The Lynx are stocked with shooters from all areas of the floor, and that’s how they set a franchise record sinking 12 threes.
2. Renee Montgomery is so good, Lindsay Whalen doesn’t need to be 100 percent for this series.
There was worry for Whalen’s health and conditioning, as the WNBA’s third all-time leader in assists had surgery on a broken finger and hadn’t played since. She played just seven first-half minutes for the Lynx, but that had less to do with her injury, and more to do with Montgomery’s stellar efforts on both ends.
Montgomery lit up Washington for 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting. But she did way more than that. She held Kristi Toliver, who made nine three-pointers last week in one game to set a WNBA playoff record, to just seven SHOT ATTEMPTS. Toliver only had three points for the game, and was a non-issue for Minnesota with Montgomery attached to her hip. Toliver was forced to be a playmaker rather than a scorer, and that threw her off her game.
If Montgomery can continue to hold Toliver, Washington shouldn’t have enough offensive power to win, and Whalen can rest as much as she needs.
3. Maya Moore is as close to a Delle Donne-stopper as there can be.
Similar to Montgomery, Moore never left Delle Donne’s side defensively, and limited her touches on the wing. Delle Donne thrives off the dribble, and Moore’s pressure forced her to play with her back to the basket. She looked uncomfortable.
It didn’t matter that Moore gave up three inches to the taller Delle Donne; the Mystics’ leading scorer couldn’t command her usual touches with Washington’s offense completely rattled.
Delle Donne still got hers, though it mostly came too late, and with a true forward guarding her. Moore kept her in check when it mattered.
