Minnesota Lynx vs. Los Angeles Sparks Prediction, Preview and Odds - 7/11/21
It’s a clash of Western Conference teams in the final WNBA game before the break for the All-Star Game and the Tokyo Olympics. The Minnesota Lynx are on the road as they head to the City of Angels to face the Los Angeles Sparks Sunday night. Minnesota comes in off a 77-67 win on the road over Las Vegas Friday night in their most recent contest. Los Angeles fell 71-62 on the road to Seattle Wednesday night as they were swept in a home-and-home series. In the first meeting between the teams this season, it was the Lynx taking an 80-64 victory at home on June 12 for their second straight win in the series.
Minnesota Lynx Seeking Seventh Straight Victory
Minnesota ran their win streak to six games as they went on the road and beat Las Vegas despite not going to the charity stripe in the game. The Lynx improved to 11-7 on the season and entered Saturday fourth in the WNBA playoff picture, three games behind the league-leading Storm. Against Las Vegas, Minnesota never trailed as they scored the game’s first five points and never looked back. The Lynx ran to a 15-point lead after the opening quarter and never let the Aces within single digits after that. Minnesota shot 45.3% from the field, including nine of 22 from three-point range, and held the Aces to 35.8% from the floor in the game. Layshia Clarendon led the Lynx with 18 points, five rebounds and nine assists in the win.
On the season, the Lynx are 5th in the league in scoring offense with an average of 83.2 points per game. Minnesota is 7th in rebounding as they collect 35.2 boards a night while the team is third in assists by dishing 20.8 dimes a night. The Lynx are sixth in the league in scoring defense as they give up an average of 81.1 points per contest this season. Sylvia Fowles is second on the team with 16.3 points plus 10 rebounds per contest. Kayla McBride (14.3 points), Crystal Dangerfield (8.5 points, 3.6 assists) and Aerial Powers (10 points, 4.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists) are solid secondary scoring options. Damiris Dantas, Napheesa Collier (16.6 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.2 assists), Jessica Shepard, Layshia Clarendon (10.4 points, 5.4 assists), Bridget Carleton, Rachael Banham, Natalie Achonwa and Linnae Harper are looked at to be contributors for coach Cheryl Reeve. Minnesota stands second in the league in field goal percentage as they shoot 45.6% from the field as a team this year. The Lynx are tied for 6th in the league in three-pointers per game (7.1) and 8th in three-point shooting as they hit 34% of their attempts from beyond the arc. Minnesota is 5th in the league in free throw shooting as they hit 82.1% of their attempts at the charity stripe. Powers is out eight to 10 weeks after undergoing thumb surgery June 18 for a torn UCL. Achonwa (knee) and Rennia Davis (foot) are out indefinitely at this point in time. Dangerfield (shoulder) left Friday’s game and is questionable here.
Los Angeles Sparks Look to Prevail at Home
Los Angeles dropped their fifth straight and their seventh in the last eight games as they were dumped in the back half of a home-and-home set with Seattle. The Sparks entered Saturday 6-12 on the season and stood 10th in the WNBA playoff picture, two games behind the Wings for the final playoff spot. Los Angeles led by one early before getting outscored 19-4 the rest of the opening quarter to trail 23-9 and couldn’t come back. The Sparks trailed as many as 17 in the first half, by nine at halftime and closed within one with 2:04 to play. That was as close as Los Angeles would get as they were outscored 10-2 the rest of the way to take the loss. Los Angeles shot 35.6% from the field, including four of 19 from three-point range, and lost the rebounding battle 37-28. Erica Wheeler was the lone player for the Sparks in double figures with 22 points in the loss.
On the season, Los Angeles is 12th in the league in scoring offense as they average 73.8 points per game. The Sparks are last in rebounding (29.8 boards per game) and 12th in assists (14.4) this season. Los Angeles is 3rd in scoring defense as they give up an average of 79.5 points a night. Nneka Ogwumike leads the team with 16.4 points plus seven rebounds a game this season. Chiney Ogwumike (nine points, 5.7 boards) and Kristi Tolliver (9.8 points) are solid secondary scoring options. Derek Fisher hopes to get more from role players like Brittney Sykes, Nia Coffey (7.5 points), Erica Wheeler (14 points, 4.3 assists), Te’a Cooper (9.8 points), Amanda Zahui B. (11.4 points, 6.3 boards) and Arella Guirantes. Los Angeles is 12th in field goal percentage on the season as they shoot 39.7% from the field as a team on the year. The Sparks are fifth in three-pointers per game (7.3) and 9th in three-point shooting as they convert 33.6% from beyond the arc this season. Los Angeles is 11th in success at the charity stripe as they cash in 76.2% of their attempts on the year. Jasmine Walker was lost for the season with a torn ACL that she suffered against Las Vegas May 21. Chiney Ogwumike missed the last 15 games with a knee injury and is out indefinitely. Nneka Ogwumike is expected to miss four to six weeks with a knee sprain sustained against the Wings June 1. She is expected to be out until mid-July. Kristi Toliver (eye) is out again here and will miss her fourth straight game.
Pick: Minnesota Lynx
Minnesota is on a roll with six straight victories coming into this contest and they have really established themselves as a solid force. The Lynx own two wins over the Aces and a pair over the Mercury during this run. Meanwhile, Los Angeles has dropped five straight and seven of eight heading into this contest. The Sparks continue to be without the Ogwumike sisters and also won’t have Toliver, putting a lot of pressure on Wheeler to carry the load. Meanwhile, Minnesota has a solid rotation to work with and they have several contributors on the offensive end of the floor. With the momentum the Lynx have, you have to go their way in this one, especially given how banged up the Sparks are.
Total: Under
Los Angeles continues to try and get by with their defensive play. That hasn’t paid a ton of dividends, given the fact that they are last in the league in several offensive categories this season. With so many key pieces missing, it’s tough for the Sparks to generate enough offense to push games over the total. Los Angeles has seen the under hit in 12 of their 18 games on the year. Minnesota has been rolling of late with six straight wins and they have seen the over hit in 10 of their 18 contests. The first meeting between the teams this season fell 13 points short of the total and six of the last 10 meetings have followed that route. With Los Angeles sputtering offensively, this one ends up falling short of the mark.
