Game 1 of the Sun vs. Lynx WNBA playoff series tips off at 8:30 p.m. ET on Sunday night. With the Lynx laying four points as a home favorite and the total sitting at 155, what’s the best betting approach for tonight’s game?
Sun vs. Lynx Event Information
Connecticut Sun (+4) at Minnesota Lynx (-4); o/u 155
8:30 p.m. ET, Sunday, September 29, 2024
Target Center, Minneapolis, MN
TV: ESPN
Sun vs. Lynx Game Preview
After Napheesa Collier carried the Minnesota Lynx to victory with 38 points in their opener in the WNBA playoffs, coach Cheryl Reeve implored Collier’s teammates to bring even more intensity for the second game of the series.
“I told the team before the game: ‘Look, Phee’s not going to get 38 tonight,’” Reeve said, reflecting later on the first-round sweep of Phoenix.
As Collier was subbed out with that win in Game 2 in hand, the four-time All-Star and favorite for the Defensive Player of the Year award needled Reeve about that pregame warning by reminding her coach that, technically, she was right.
Collier topped herself with 42 points on Wednesday, helping the Lynx hit the 100-point mark for the second straight game and setting an all-time league record with 80 points in two consecutive postseason games. She tied Breanna Stewart and Angel McCoughtry for the WNBA single playoff game scoring record.
“She’s insane. Y’all have been watching? She’s been going crazy. She’s making history, man,” Lynx point guard Courtney Williams said. “I’m just excited I can be a part of it, man. I’m here to help her, and whatever she needs we’re here to do it.”
When Minnesota hosts Connecticut on Sunday night at Target Center in Game 1 of the best-of-five semifinals, Collier will of course be the driving force for this new-era Lynx squad that’s looking to bring the franchise a fifth title. The Sun have never won a championship.
“Phee just has the ability to each game know what it is she’s going to get and how she’s going to get it. She’s like an amoeba,” Reeve said. “If they’re going to let her be in the paint, then she’s going to find herself in the paint, she’s going to screen, she’s going to roll. If the paint’s going to be more difficult, she understands how she’s going to play in movement and by shooting the ‘3’ well.”
Sun vs. Lynx Prediction
Take DeWanna Bonner over 14.5 points. Bonner finished with only nine points when these two teams met on September 17 in Connecticut. That said, she dominated the other two Sun-Lynx meetings. In the July 4 matchup in Minnesota, Bonner had a game-high 24 points in the Sun’s 78-73 victory. In the May 23 matchup, she had another game-high, finishing with 20 points in the Sun’s 83-82 overtime victory.
Bonner also had 15 points versus the Fever in Game 1 of the Sun’s first-round series. She scored another 22 points in Game 2. She’s in good form.
Sun vs. Lynx WNBA Prediction: DeWanna Bonner over 14.5 Points