Fowles, Lynx Pull Out Tense Game 2 to Even WNBA Finals

In the blink of an eye the Fever’s nine-point lead turned into a game tied at 54.

“I think we still did a good job of attacking in the first half”, White said. Reeve wouldn’t comment on whether the criticism earned her a fine, but Fever coach Stephanie White believes the remarks did play a role in how Game 2 was called.

One item that can not be overlooked is the rebounding battle. Indiana finished the quarter shooting 52.6 percent from the field compared to the 50 percent that Minnesota shot.

This season, Fowles has averaged 15.7 points accompanied by 9.7 rebounds per game and is a three-time Olympic gold medalist. In Game 1, just pulled in just three in more than 28 minutes. Down two early, the Fever, with Coleman hitting two 3-pointers, went on a 16-4 run to take an 18-4 lead on January’s basket.

“We know we have to take our level up another step”, said Briann January. “Every game we’ll go, ‘Whalen doesn’t get that call.’ And it’s really discouraging. I really think that’s helped us in the playoffs to be successful”. She surprisingly didn’t record any steals, but her perimeter pressure was the catalyst for a lot of Fever turnovers. Two points was as close as the Fever could get, the Lynx holding them at an arm’s length for the whole final quarter.

That doesn’t mean she doesn’t think it is important or that she’s not paying attention. She said she will look at ways to free Whalen up.

White never backed off her comments. It was his first interview of the postseason. And that comes as no surprise, considering she’s a seven-year Fever vet and one of five holdovers from the 2012 championship squad. The chemistry of the team and the organization is probably second to none as well, from the top down.

“Sylvia Fowles has been the difference for us”, Reeve said. “She’s been very vocal with what she needs”. She made nine of her first 11 shots and held down the fort before Moore got going. “She treats her players and her staff very well”.

Even seldom-used Natasha Howard was getting in on the action. The Lynx, on the other hand, are relying on their in-her-prime superstar more than ever. She scored the first four points of the game and had 14 in the first half. “They were going to come back”.

“I’m not seasoned enough to be calculating”, White said later. “I think it was the second half, no question”.

“I absolutely did”, she said. “I’m happy to be here with my teammates celebrating my 30th birthday and it makes it better we have a Finals game tonight”.

Then their coach just lost it.

Maya Moore won two NCAA titles at UConn (2009-2010) and was the 2014 WNBA MVP. Never. And to me that’s a travesty. But we didn’t know that Indiana was going to be able to essentially negate Brunson’s impact in the first two games, making it the Sylvia Fowles show. “Teams that have maybe a few weaknesses chemistry-wise have the potential to hurt themselves, and at this point in the year you can’t afford to do that. Either one of them, and we need more from them”.

Who has been the X-factor for each team?