WNBA Playoffs: Sun forces decisive Game 5 in semifinal series against Lynx, winning 92-82

The New York Liberty have one more game to wait until their opponent in the 2024 WNBA Finals is determined.

The Connecticut Sun forced a decisive Game 5 in their playoff semifinal series, defeating the Minnesota Lynx 92-82 in Game 4 on Sunday. Game 5 is scheduled for Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET at the Target Center in Minneapolis.

Minnesota led 50-43 at halftime and looked poised to advance to the WNBA Finals. But Connecticut came back with a second-half surge, outscoring Minnesota 49-32.

“Obviously there’s a sense of urgency,” Sun coach Stephanie White said before the game. “You have to play like you’re desperate.”

The Lynx cut their deficit to 72-65 with eight minutes left in the fourth quarter, but the Sun closed the game with a 20-17 run led by Alyssa Thomas and DeWanna Bonner for the final margin.

Tyasha Harris scored 20 points (a playoff career high) and led the Suns by shooting 4 for 5 on 3-pointers. Thomas followed with 18 points, eight rebounds and 10 assists. Bonner also had 18 points with eight rebounds, four assists and four steals. And DiJonai Carrington finished the game with 15 points and five rebounds.

Again, 3-point shooting makes a difference

A big difference for the Sun in Game 4 was better 3-point shooting. After a 3-for-20 performance in Game 3, Connecticut rebounded to shoot 8-for-15 (53%) from behind the arc. In addition to Harris' four 3-pointers, Marina Mabrey shot 2 of 6 after going 1 of 11 in Friday's loss.

Another difference from Game 3 was that Minnesota shot poorly from 3-point range. The Lynx went 10-26 (39%) while Bridget Carleton went 2-11.

Napheesa Collier continued her 26-point, 11-rebound performance in Game 3 with 29 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Lynx. But she was the team's only consistent scoring threat.

Natisha Heideman followed with 16 points, including a long three-pointer at the buzzer to end the first half. But Courtney Williams was the only other Minnesota player to score in double figures with 11 points.

Who would Liberty rather face in the WNBA Finals?

The Liberty await the winner of Game 5 on Tuesday after defeating the Las Vegas Aces 76-62 to complete their WNBA playoff semifinals. New York's players and coaches will probably say that in the championship it doesn't matter who their opponent is. But they had a better record against one of the teams.

During the regular season, the Liberty went 3-1 against the Sun. Breanna Stewart averaged 15 points and 12 rebounds in three of the four games. Even better was Sabrina Ionescu, who scored 21.8 points per game.

Neither the Liberty nor the Sun have ever won a WNBA championship, while the Lynx have four titles in franchise history, most recently in 2017.

New York took a 1-2 lead against Minnesota. Collier averaged 16 points and 12 rebounds in the three games, followed by Kayla McBride with 14 points per game.

Breanna Stewart averaged 25 points and 15 rebounds for the Liberty, including 38 points and 18 rebounds in their Sept. 15 match. Sabrina Ionescu scored 14.3 points per game.

The WNBA Finals begin on Thursday.