Lynx ease past the Mercury 88-65 behind Napheesa Collier’s 18 points, 11 rebounds

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Napheesa Collier posted a double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds, and Natisha Hiedeman also scored 18 to lead the Minnesota Lynx to a dominant 88-65 win over the Phoenix Mercury on Tuesday night. It marked Minnesota’s second victory over Phoenix in just five days.

With this win, the Lynx have opened the season 8-0 — the fourth time in franchise history they’ve achieved such a start. Remarkably, that matches the combined total of all other WNBA teams.

After falling behind 23-14 late in the first quarter, the Lynx stormed back, outscoring the Mercury 49-23 over the next stretch to seize a 63-46 lead with under three minutes left in the third.

Minnesota pulled away in the fourth quarter with a 9-0 run, sparked by a three-point play from Collier and back-to-back three-pointers from Bridget Carleton and Kayla McBride to extend the lead to 80-56.

McBride, Alanna Smith, and Karlie Samuelson each knocked down three of Minnesota’s 12 total 3-pointers. Smith and McBride both finished with 13 points, with McBride also dishing out a team-high seven assists. The Lynx recorded a season-best 29 assists on 34 made field goals, though they also committed 23 turnovers.

For the Mercury (5-3), Lexi Held led the way with 16 points, while Satou Sabally added 15 points and eight rebounds. Kitija Laksa contributed 10 points. Sabally didn’t score in the second half until just under seven minutes remained in the game.

The Lynx had also edged out the Mercury 74-71 last Friday — a game played without Collier, who was sidelined with a knee injury.