Lynx vs. Chicago, 4 p.m. at Target Center in the single-elimination second round of the WNBA playoffs
TV: ESPN2
Minnesota update: This is the first playoff game played in Minnesota since the Lynx won Game 5 of the 2017 WNBA finals, 85-76, over Los Angeles at Williams Arena. Minnesota is 1-2 in single-elimination playoff games, having lost on the road in 2018 and 2019 before beating Phoenix in the WNBA bubble in a second-round game last season. The two teams split this season, with the winning team scoring more than 100 points in each game. F Napheesa Collier has averaged 17.7 points her last three games. She averaged 20.5 in two games vs. Chicago, including 27 in a loss in Chicago. In her first two seasons, Collier has scored more in the playoffs (17.0 points per game) than in the regular season (14.9). G Kayla McBride averaged 12.5 points in two games vs. Chicago, Sylvia Fowles 14.5, Crystal Dangerfield 10.0 points and 4.0 assists, and Layshia Clarendon 12.0 points and 5.0 assists. Clarendon's status is questionable for Sunday's game.
Chicago update: Like the Lynx, the Sky has five players averaging in double figures, led by F Kahleah Copper (14.4), Candace Parker (13.3), Allie Quigley (13.2), Diamond DeShields (11.3) and Courtney Vandersloot (10.5). The Sky also had the WNBA's third most productive bench (24.5). The backcourt of Vandersloot and Quigley has been particularly effective against the Lynx this season. Vandersloot has shot 14-for-21 in two games, averaging 18.5 points and 10.5 assists. Quigley has scored 50 points in two games vs. the Lynx, on 18-for-28 shooting (7-for-9 on threes). The two each scored 27 points in Chicago's loss to the Lynx on Aug. 21.
