Euro 2024: What Every Team Needs To Qualify From Group Stage
NEW YORK -- — Napheesa Collier and the Minnesota Lynx put the WNBA on notice that they are a championship caliber team.
Bridget Carleton scored 23 points and Collier added 21 to help the Lynx win their first Commissioner's Cup championship with a 94-89 victory over the New York Liberty on Tuesday night.
“Means a lot. Testament to where we are at this season,” Collier said. “This is the best group. Our personalities mesh so well. Any night anyone can have 20. Bridget had an outstanding game. It’s so fun.”
The Lynx became the fourth different team to win the Cup in the event's four-year history and continued the trend of the host team losing. New York was trying to be the first to repeat as champions after winning in Las Vegas last season.
“It’s really good, always want to win championships,” Collier said. “This is a championship we won, but there’s still work to be done. A lot of games to be played. We want to build on this. We don’t want to peak here. This is amazing at the end of the day we want to achieve bigger things than this at the end of the season."
The game was tied at 60 late in the third quarter when Carleton and Cecilia Zandalasini hit consecutive 3-pointers to start a 10-0 run that spanned the periods.
Breanna Stewart scored nine straight points to get the Liberty within 70-69, but they could never regain the lead. Courtney Williams and Carleton scored the next five points for Minnesota and New York never really threatened again.
“What I’m proud of is we answered every run on the road and that tells you everything about our basketball team,” Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve said.
Collier, who also had six rebounds and three assists, won the game’s MVP award.
Stewart scored 24 points and Sabrina Ionescu added 23.
“I think that they executed better than us and that’s it, both ends of the floor,” Stewart said. “We weren’t able to get anything we wanted. Twenty-one turnovers is never going to win the game.”
Jonquel Jones, who has been fantastic for the Liberty all season, struggled on Tuesday night. She missed all three of her field-goal attempts and didn't score until hitting two free throws with 1:20 left.
“JJ has been playing great, they really took her out of the game, made it hard for her to catch the ball,” Liberty coach Sandy Brondello said.
The game was moved from the Liberty's usual home Barclays Center to UBS Arena — about 20 miles away — because the NBA draft was being held there Wednesday night and there wasn't enough time to changeover the arena after the game.
Even though it wasn't their normal home, the Liberty faithful showed up and were loud, trying to spur on their team to victory.
New York built a 47-37 lead midway through the second quarter before the Lynx scored eight straight points to get within two. The Liberty led 50-47 at the break as Ionescu had 18 points and Kayla Thornton 14.
The Liberty welcomed back Courtney Vandersloot, who hadn't played since June 4 to be with her mom who passed away two weekends ago. She checked in for the first time with 3:30 left in the opening quarter and finished with four points.
“Shows a lot about who she is and how much she cares about being a part of this team,” Ionescu said. “Wanting to sacrifice to suit up and be available to us. Credit to her, it's so tough to do what she's doing."
New York also saw the return of Betnijah-Laney Hamilton, who had been sidelined with right knee soreness for the past week. She was back in the starting lineup, finishing with 13 points.
FINANCIAL INCENTIVE
The teams for the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup will split a prize pool of $500,000. Players on Minnesota can make up to $30,000 while each player on New York makes $10,000. Every player competing will also receive $5,000 in crypto currency.
There was also a charitable component with New York raising $15,000 for Women Creating Change and Minnesota earning $13,500 for Gender Justice. The Lynx earned an additional $10,000 for their charity by winning and the Liberty received $5,000 for finishing second.
------
AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball
KUintbanner Contactus Landing 1000026281 Scaled E1706213642483 1536x864 E609d61e9d68be61689bb842a7ada7fa KU CETS Page Banner ?auto=compress%2CformatMaxresdefault Maxresdefault ?sqp= OaymwEmCIAKENAF8quKqQMa8AEB AHUBoAC4AOKAgwIABABGFogZShTMA8=&rs=AOn4CLBqlul6JBcSp0DR12fdYdRPYBmB4QMaxresdefault Maxresdefault Maxresdefault News Avatar FhiTSrNWAAIZG1U Large5425 20161219 Kitchener2 Resize Then Crop Frame Bg Color FFF H 1365 Gravity Center Q 70 Preserve Ratio True W 2048 89202507 Vbnm,klñ{ Maxresdefault Bb6c171d606a8fe2a604c1866fc71220 41080884815 65e5577929 N D22671713e0c604e52a37412bba05318 City Of Kitchener Utilities And Property Tax A Citys Transformation Story 23 638 ?cb=1476784543Maxresdefault 50 Sportsworld Dr Kitchener ON Aerial 4 LargeHighDefinition City Of Kitchener Utilities And Property Tax A Citys Transformation Story 9 638 ?cb=1476784543V1 42932a F17bcb0e91934b939b168c722eb1696d~mv2 Maxresdefault Front Pick Up Counter 1200x900 1280x960Screen Shot 2022 12 16 At 11.42.19 AM E45a60ff C436 459f A78f 5c4d90671aea ?n=683A44906472489771e58d8f788e0cf2b9c KUintbanner Newhomes City Of Kitchener Utilities And Property Tax A Citys Transformation Story 12 638 ?cb=1476784543Maxresdefault B48a964c9c122814f5d16e452e0dd8b4 KUintbanner Naturlgas Option
Euro 2024: What Every Team Needs To Qualify From Group Stage
NEW YORK -- — Napheesa Collier and the Minnesota Lynx put the WNBA on notice that they are a championship caliber team.
Bridget Carleton scored 23 points and Collier added 21 to help the Lynx win their first Commissioner's Cup championship with a 94-89 victory over the New York Liberty on Tuesday night.
“Means a lot. Testament to where we are at this season,” Collier said. “This is the best group. Our personalities mesh so well. Any night anyone can have 20. Bridget had an outstanding game. It’s so fun.”
The Lynx became the fourth different team to win the Cup in the event's four-year history and continued the trend of the host team losing. New York was trying to be the first to repeat as champions after winning in Las Vegas last season.
“It’s really good, always want to win championships,” Collier said. “This is a championship we won, but there’s still work to be done. A lot of games to be played. We want to build on this. We don’t want to peak here. This is amazing at the end of the day we want to achieve bigger things than this at the end of the season."
The game was tied at 60 late in the third quarter when Carleton and Cecilia Zandalasini hit consecutive 3-pointers to start a 10-0 run that spanned the periods.
Breanna Stewart scored nine straight points to get the Liberty within 70-69, but they could never regain the lead. Courtney Williams and Carleton scored the next five points for Minnesota and New York never really threatened again.
“What I’m proud of is we answered every run on the road and that tells you everything about our basketball team,” Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve said.
Collier, who also had six rebounds and three assists, won the game’s MVP award.
Stewart scored 24 points and Sabrina Ionescu added 23.
“I think that they executed better than us and that’s it, both ends of the floor,” Stewart said. “We weren’t able to get anything we wanted. Twenty-one turnovers is never going to win the game.”
Jonquel Jones, who has been fantastic for the Liberty all season, struggled on Tuesday night. She missed all three of her field-goal attempts and didn't score until hitting two free throws with 1:20 left.
“JJ has been playing great, they really took her out of the game, made it hard for her to catch the ball,” Liberty coach Sandy Brondello said.
The game was moved from the Liberty's usual home Barclays Center to UBS Arena — about 20 miles away — because the NBA draft was being held there Wednesday night and there wasn't enough time to changeover the arena after the game.
Even though it wasn't their normal home, the Liberty faithful showed up and were loud, trying to spur on their team to victory.
New York built a 47-37 lead midway through the second quarter before the Lynx scored eight straight points to get within two. The Liberty led 50-47 at the break as Ionescu had 18 points and Kayla Thornton 14.
The Liberty welcomed back Courtney Vandersloot, who hadn't played since June 4 to be with her mom who passed away two weekends ago. She checked in for the first time with 3:30 left in the opening quarter and finished with four points.
“Shows a lot about who she is and how much she cares about being a part of this team,” Ionescu said. “Wanting to sacrifice to suit up and be available to us. Credit to her, it's so tough to do what she's doing."
New York also saw the return of Betnijah-Laney Hamilton, who had been sidelined with right knee soreness for the past week. She was back in the starting lineup, finishing with 13 points.
FINANCIAL INCENTIVE
The teams for the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup will split a prize pool of $500,000. Players on Minnesota can make up to $30,000 while each player on New York makes $10,000. Every player competing will also receive $5,000 in crypto currency.
There was also a charitable component with New York raising $15,000 for Women Creating Change and Minnesota earning $13,500 for Gender Justice. The Lynx earned an additional $10,000 for their charity by winning and the Liberty received $5,000 for finishing second.
------
AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball
