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Carleton went 6-for-8 from 3-point range and
also had four rebounds and three steals, while Napheesa Collier
scored 21 points for Minnesota. Reserve Cecilia Zandalasini
chipped in 15 points, Kayla McBride scored 12 and Courtney
Williams added 11 points and eight assists.
It's the first Commissioner's Cup title for the Lynx. A
different team has won the WNBA's midseason tournament in each
of its four years of existence.
Breanna Stewart led the Liberty (15-3) with 24 points while
pulling down 11 rebounds, and Sabrina Ionescu tallied 23 points
and 10 boards. Kayla Thornton added 17 points, while Betnijah
Laney-Hamilton had 13.
Liberty center Jonquel Jones, the 2021 WNBA MVP, struggled to
find open looks and didn't score her first points until there
was 81 seconds left in the game. She finished with three points
and a game-high 12 rebounds.
Notably, the stats and result from Tuesday's game do not count
toward the regular season.
Minnesota locked down defensively in the third quarter,
outscoring the Liberty 19-10 to take a 66-60 edge into the
fourth.
Zandalasini got the Lynx's lead up to 70-60 with 9:01 to go
before Stewart took over. She went on a personal 9-0 run,
getting New York within a point with 6:56 remaining.
However, Minnesota never gave up the lead, and after Carleton
knocked down a trey with 1:51 left to increase the gap to 88-77,
the Lynx cruised to the finish.
The Liberty pulled away for a 10-point advantage with 3:51 left
in the second quarter thanks to a 14-5 run that was powered by
three straight makes from Ionescu, who effortlessly mixed her
jumper with a smooth floater.
However, the Lynx were within 50-47 at the break, even after New
York's Courtney Vandersloot made a layup with 7.7 seconds left
in the first half.
--Field Level Media [© 2024 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
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