Napheesa Collier had 24 points and 10 rebounds and the visiting Minnesota Lynx defeated the Seattle Storm 78-70 on Friday night.
Kayla McBride added 21 points and Tiffany Mitchell 14 for the Lynx (15-16), who won for just the second time in five games. Dorka Juhasz came off the bench to add seven points, 12 rebounds and four assists.
Sami Whitcomb had 23 points, Jewell Loyd scored 15 and Ezi Magbegor had 13 points and seven rebounds for the Storm (9-22), who had won three of their last four and five of their last seven.
Minnesota scored 23 points each quarter before halftime to lead by seven. The Lynx doubled the margin at the end of the third quarter, and then held off Seattle in the fourth as the Storm outscored the Lynx 20-14 in the final period.
The Lynx increased the margin to 11 points early in the third quarter and 10 points on three occasions later in the period, before Juhasz’s three-point play gave them a 64-50 lead at the end of the period.
Minnesota increased the lead to 15 before Loyd made a 3-pointer to get Seattle within eight points with 3:34 left.
The Storm got within eight one a more times before Mitchell’s basket gave Minnesota a 10-point lead with 2:27 left.
Minnesota’s Diamond Miller made a layup for the first points of the game, but the Storm led by as many as five before Collier’s three-point play pulled the Lynx even at 16.
Jordan Horston’s basket gave the Storm an 18-16 lead before Collier made four free throws to help Minnesota take a 23-18 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Seattle pulled within 28-27 before Minnesota went on an 11-0 run.
Sami Whitcomb made two 3-pointers that helped the Storm pull within 39-37.
Mitchell scored five points to help the Lynx open a 46-39 halftime lead.
–Field Level Media