Game 2 at a glance
7 p.m. Tuesday at Williams Arena • ESPN2, 106.1-FM
Preview: Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve didn't like the way Sunday's Game 1 started or finished. It started with a 28-2 Sparks run and ended on Chelsea Gray's game-winning jumper with 2 seconds left. Dating to last year's league finals, the Sparks and Lynx have met six times, with the Sparks winning four. Of those, three have come on dagger late-game jumpers: Alana Beard hit a 21-footer at the buzzer in a Game 1 victory last year; Nneka Ogwumike hit a 4-foot putback with 3.1 seconds left in Game 5 last year, and Gray hit the winner Sunday. On Monday, Reeve questioned her team's readiness, its effort and its edge to start the game. The Lynx cannot afford to go to L.A. down 0-2. But the Lynx have never lost a finals Game 2.
Players to watch: Lynx forward Maya Moore is coming off a 27-point game, with 10 coming in the fourth quarter as the Lynx rallied from 12 down to take two one-point leads late. After going 1-for-3 for three points and no rebounds in the first quarter Sunday, C Sylvia Fowles went 9-for-12 with 19 points and 13 rebounds the reset of the way. Look for F Rebekkah Brunson to bounce back from her 1-for-6 performance Sunday, which prompted Reeve to go small with guard Jia Perkins. The Sparks had all five starters score in double figures, led by Gray, who had 27. She has averaged nearly 19 points in her last six games vs. the Lynx, including playoffs. With G Odyssey Sims scoring 16 points, the Sparks starting backcourt got 43 points and 11 assists. F Candace Parker made just five of 14 shots, but scored 15 points with 12 rebounds.
Numbers: Game 1, shown on ABC, had a 0.6 overnight rating, the best ever for Game 1 on the ESPN/ABC networks. It was a 20 percent increase over last year's Game 1. Interestingly, the top national market for the game was Nashville (4.6), followed by Minnesota (1.9).
Injuries: None.
Kent Youngblood
