Last night’s nationally televised game was a decent showing by the Lynx, even though it ended up in a loss. This was a fun game to watch, as the teams exchanged blows for three quarters until Connecticut landed the knock out punch in the fourth.
Upon looking at the box score, it is somewhat difficult to understand why the Lynx were not able to pull out a win against the Sun. Minnesota out-rebounded Connecticut by nine and dished out three more assists. They had three players in double figures scoring—with a fourth one point shy—to Connecticut’s two and shot over 50% from three-point land.
Yet, the answer as to why this ended up as another notch in the loss column for the Lynx can be summed up in one word: experience. Connecticut, although their season has also not gone as they would have hoped, is a veteran team who knows that those little things can add up to a loss if you allow them to happen.
The Lynx, on the other hand, still make the mistakes that youth brings. This one game can be summed up by three stats in the box score…
Turnovers
Minnesota – 15
Connecticut – 9
Personal Fouls
Minnesota – 19
Connecticut – 12
Free Throws Made and Attempted
Minnesota – 10 for 16
Connecticut – 16 for 20
Playing a solid game, without turning the ball over on the offensive end and defending without fouling, are trademarks of good basketball teams. Minnesota certainly has potential on their team and hope for the future, but these are some of the issues that need to be addressed. Whether that means bringing in more veterans in the off-season or if they truly believe the young players will mature quickly, who knows?
Either way, I will take Coach Zierden at his word that this is the evaluation year. At what point next season should the evaluation end and production—by winning games—begin?
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