Napheesa Collier outdueled A’ja Wilson in a battle of Most Valuable Player candidates as the Minnesota Lynx held off the Las Vegas Aces 87-74 on Friday night in Minneapolis.
Collier extended her red-hot return from the Olympic break by scoring 27 points on 11-for-15 shooting from the floor and collecting a career-best 18 rebounds. She added five assists.
Collier and Natisha Hiedeman helped the Lynx (21-8) break open the game in the third quarter before Wilson and Tiffany Hayes guided the Aces back within four points in the fourth.
Minnesota’s Kayla McBride made a corner 3-pointer that ended a 9-0 Las Vegas run with 6:02 remaining, and Courtney Williams netted four points across consecutive Lynx possessions before leaving the game in the final minutes with an apparent knee injury. Collier’s long 2-pointer at the 2:15 mark was the final dagger.
Wilson scored 15 of her 24 points after halftime and wound up with seven rebounds, but the Aces (17-11) fell to the Lynx for the second time in three days.
Minnesota stretched its overall winning streak to five and won the season series 3-1 over the two-time defending champs.
Alanna Smith went for 15 points, seven rebounds, four assists and three steals for the Lynx. Williams had 13 points and seven boards, and Hiedeman and McBride each scored 12 points with three 3-pointers.
Hayes and Jackie Young scored 12 points apiece for the Aces while Kelsey Plum finished with 11.
The Lynx used a 10-0 run during the first period to pull ahead 18-13 before the Aces drew even at 18 by quarter’s end.
Las Vegas went on an 11-0 surge featuring 3-pointers from Hayes, Megan Gustafson and Plum to move ahead 35-31 with 3:15 left in the half.
Collier dominated the final minute to give the Lynx a 40-39 halftime lead. She hit a layup off Smith’s assist, then grabbed a defensive rebound and took it the other way in just eight seconds for a mid-range jumper. Collier had 15 points and 10 rebounds at intermission.
The Lynx opened up a 62-45 lead late in the third quarter, their largest of the night, but Wilson found another gear and scored the Aces’ final 11 points of the period. She singlehandedly pulled them within 65-54 after three quarters.
Young and Hayes combined for a 9-0 Aces spurt that cut the deficit to 67-63.
–Field Level Media