2017 Minnesota Lynx season

2017 Minnesota Lynx season
WNBA champions
CoachCheryl Reeve
ArenaXcel Energy Center (Regular Season)
Williams Arena (Playoffs)
Attendance10,407 per game
Results
Record27–7 (.794)
Place1st (Western)
Playoff finishWNBA Champions
Team Leaders
PointsFowles (18.9)
ReboundsFowles (10.4)
AssistsWhalen (4.1)
Media
TelevisionFox Sports North, ESPN, NBATV

The 2017 WNBA season of the Minnesota Lynx is their 19th season in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Lynx finished the 2016 season with a record of 28–6, finishing first in the Western Conference (and the league as a whole) and qualifying for the playoffs, before ultimately beating Los Angeles in the WNBA Finals to win their league-tying best fourth championship.

The Lynx moved from their normal home, Target Center in Minneapolis, to the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul for the 2017 season due to the renovation that would be taking place at Target Center.[1] Due to the Minnesota Wild season beginning, the Lynx announced that the entirety of their playoff run would be played at the University of Minnesota's Williams Arena.[2]

The Lynx opened the season on May 14 with a 70–61 victory over the Chicago Sky. Sylvia Fowles led the way with 26 points and 10 rebounds.[3] During the May 20 game versus the Dallas Wings, Rebekkah Brunson recorded her 3,000th career rebound, becoming the fifth player in league history to do so.[4] Cheryl Reeve was named the inaugural WNBA Coach of the Month for the month of May.[5] Lindsay Whalen became the all-time winningest player in WNBA history with 295 wins, with a June 9 victory over the Washington Mystics. The win broke the tie with Swin Cash, giving Whalen first place in that category all by herself.[6]

With the win against the San Antonio Stars on June 25, Seimone Augustus, Rebekkah Brunson, Maya Moore, and Lindsay Whalen became the winningest quartet in WNBA History with 122 wins, passing the Los Angeles Sparks quartet of Tamecka Dixon, Lisa Leslie, Mwadi Mabika, and Delisha Milton-Jones who recorded 121 from 1999 to 2004.[7] During the July 6 victory over the Sparks, Maya Moore scored her 4,000th career point.[8]

Four Lynx players were named to the West All-Star Team - Maya Moore, Sylvia Fowles, Seimone Augustus, Rebekkah Brunson. Moore and Fowles were named starters, while Augustus and Brunson were named reserves. Brunson was selected as a replacement player for the injured Brittney Griner.[9][10][11] During the July 16 game versus the Phoenix Mercury, Sylvia Fowles scored her 4,000th career point.[12] Sylvia Fowles recorded her 500th career block during the July 25 game versus the New York Liberty, becoming the seventh person in league history to do so.[13] Fowles grabbed her 2,500th career rebound during the August 8 game versus the Atlanta Dream. She became the 10th player in league history to reach that milestone.[14]

The Lynx unveiled their new logo, which will be used in the 2018 season, at the halftime of the August 11 game versus the Los Angeles Sparks.[15]

The team made WNBA history with the 111–52 victory over the Indiana Fever, breaking the WNBA record for margin of victory (59), largest run (37-0), and largest halftime lead (45). They also broke Lynx franchise records for most points in a half (68) and most field goals in any half (27), while tying a record for most points in any quarter (37).[16][17] During the same game, Jia Perkins passed Katie Douglas on the WNBA all-time steals list to move into fifth place.[18] After beating the San Antonio Stars on August 25 to begin a 3-game road trip, the Lynx clinched a spot in the WNBA semifinals.[19]

With their August 30 victory over the Indiana Fever, the Lynx recorded their 25th win of the season, which they have now done for six seasons in team history, tying a WNBA record.[20] During the September 1 game versus the Chicago Sky, Maya Moore passed Katie Smith for the franchise record for career 3-pointers.[21] On September 2, the WNBA and the Lynx announced that Minnesota would be the host of the 2018 WNBA All-Star Game. This would be the first time that the Lynx have hosted the All-Star Game.[22] Following their regular season finale victory over the Washington Mystics, the Lynx clinched the overall top seed in the 2017 WNBA Playoffs.[23]

By earning the top seed in the playoffs, the Lynx advanced to the semifinal round and faced the Washington Mystics. The Lynx swept the Mystics 3–0 to advance to the WNBA Finals. It is the Lynx's sixth time in seven years advancing to the Finals.[24] The Lynx defeated the Los Angeles Sparks in 5 games to win their fourth WNBA championship in seven years, tying the now-defunct Houston Comets for most championship titles.

  1. ^ "Minnesota Lynx Announce Xcel Energy Center as Home for 2017 Season". lynx.wnba.com. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
  2. ^ "Minnesota Lynx Announce Williams Arena as Home for All Potential 2017 Postseason Games". lynx.wnba.com. Retrieved July 27, 2017.
  3. ^ "Lynx open season by stopping Sky;Sylvia Fowles scores 26". startribune.com. Star Tribune. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
  4. ^ "Fowles, Augustus lift Lynx over Wings". startribune.com. Star Tribune. Archived from the original on May 25, 2017. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
  5. ^ "Lynx Head Coach Cheryl Reeve Named WNBA Coach of the Month". wnba.com. Retrieved June 3, 2017.
  6. ^ "Whalen Becomes WNBA's All-Time Leader In Wins". wnba.com. Retrieved June 9, 2017.
  7. ^ "Three Observations From Sunday's Lynx Win Over Stars". wnba.com. Retrieved June 27, 2017.
  8. ^ "Lynx beat Sparks 88-77 in rematch of WNBA Finals". startribune.com. Retrieved July 7, 2017.
  9. ^ "Seattle's Bird, Five Former MVPs Selected to Start Verizon WNBA All-Star 2017". wnba.com. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
  10. ^ "Ogwumike, Stewart Highlight Reserves For Verizon WNBA All-Star 2017". wnba.com. Retrieved July 18, 2017.
  11. ^ "Minnesota's Brunson, New York's Rodgers Named As Replacement Players For Verizon WNBA All-Star 2017". wnba.com. Retrieved July 19, 2017.
  12. ^ "After slow first half, Lynx crush shorthanded Phoenix". startribune.com. Retrieved July 17, 2017.
  13. ^ "Moore, Lynx survive Liberty's furious 2nd half comeback". swishappeal.com. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  14. ^ "Fowles' 27 points, 13 boards lead Lynx by Dream 81-72". wnba.com. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  15. ^ "Minnesota Lynx unveil fierce new logo for 2018". foxsports.com. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  16. ^ "Lynx shatter WNBA margin record, blasting Fever 111-52". wnba.com. Retrieved August 19, 2017.
  17. ^ @Lynx_PR (August 19, 2017). "In tonight's 111-52 victory..." (Tweet). Retrieved August 19, 2017 – via Twitter.
  18. ^ "Gameday preview: Lynx in New York to take on Liberty". startribune.com. Retrieved August 19, 2017.
  19. ^ "Lynx Complete Sweep Of Stars, Clinch Spot In Semis". lynx.wnba.com. Retrieved August 25, 2017.
  20. ^ "Lynx Top Fever In Final Regular Season Road Game". lynx.wnba.com. Retrieved August 30, 2017.
  21. ^ "Lynx Fly By Sky For 26th Win". lynx.wnba.com. Retrieved September 1, 2017.
  22. ^ "Minnesota Lynx To Host Verizon WNBA All-Star 2018". lynx.wnba.com. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  23. ^ "Lynx Take Down Mystics In Regular Season Finale". lynx.wnba.com. Retrieved September 3, 2017.
  24. ^ "Moore, Lynx headed to WNBA Finals after 3-0 sweep of Mystics". foxsports.com. Retrieved September 17, 2017.