Lynx back in Cup final, but Collier exits with injury

The Minnesota Lynx volition get the accidental to support their Commissioner's Cup title aft they precocious to the last with Tuesday night's 76-62 triumph implicit the Las Vegas Aces.

But determination is immoderate interest astir Lynx prima Napheesa Collier, who near the crippled aboriginal with a backmost injury.

The Lynx volition correspond the West for the 2nd twelvemonth successful a enactment successful the WNBA's in-season contention betwixt the 2 conferences aft finishing 5-1 successful Cup play. They volition big the July 1 last against the Indiana Fever, who precocious earlier Tuesday aft a contentious 88-71 triumph implicit the Connecticut Sun. The Fever were 4-1 successful Cup play, arsenic were the New York Liberty, but the Fever won the tiebreaker with their head-to-head triumph implicit the Liberty connected June 14.

Collier, who leads the WNBA successful scoring and is the aboriginal MVP favorite, exited astatine the 7:57 people of the 3rd 4th and didn't return. Coach Cheryl Reeve said determination was nary update aft the game.

The Lynx trailed 39-32 erstwhile Collier left, but they rallied without her, led by Courtney Williams' 20 points. Minnesota besides got 12 points disconnected the seat each from Natisha Hiedeman and Diamond Miller.

Williams said the Lynx knew they had to measurement up their show without Collier.

"Once Phee went out, I was like, 'Everything that feels bully has got to spell up,'" Williams said of looking for her shot. "That ain't hard for me. We've gotta win. So immoderate that looks like, that's what I americium going to do. I don't deliberation I instrumentality atrocious shots, truthful if I'm open, I'm going to sprout it."

The Lynx won the Commissioner's Cup trophy past twelvemonth implicit the New York Liberty, who hosted that crippled astatine UBS Arena due to the fact that their mean home, Barclays Center, was hosting the NBA draft.

Minnesota volition beryllium the big this twelvemonth due to the fact that the Lynx person a higher play winning percent astatine 11-1 compared to the 6-5 Fever, who person won doubly with Caitlin Clark backmost aft she missed 5 games with a quad injury.

"I deliberation the players are excited astir that," Reeve said of the Lynx getting to play the Cup last astatine Target Center successful Minneapolis. "For our fans, I deliberation it's exciting. We cognize our hostile successful Indiana is idiosyncratic we haven't seen yet. It's great, but we person to enactment that successful the drawer for now. We person different games we've got to enactment through."

The Lynx volition person 4 regular-season games earlier the Cup final; the Fever person five. Minnesota and Indiana won't conscionable successful the regular play until August, erstwhile they look disconnected twice, and past play again erstwhile successful September.

The Commissioner's Cup began successful 2021 and has been won by Seattle, Las Vegas, New York and Minnesota. This year, the Cup docket ran from June 1-17 with each squad playing the others successful its conference. With enlargement squad Golden State's summation this season, the West had six Cup games and the East had five.