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Roman Augustoviz spends Minnesota's winters covering college hockey, specifically the Gophers, and other University of Minnesota sports. During the summer, he writes about the WNBA's Minnesota Lynx, with a dose of U sports sprinkled in. Follow him on Twitter @RomanStrib.
Lynx face rebuilding Washington Mystics on Wednesday evening
Posted by: Roman Augustoviz under Lynx Updated: May 30, 2012 - 4:13 PM
The Lynx should beat the Washington Mystics.
Unlike the Lynx, who have nine players back from the 2011 WNBA championship team, the Mystics are just getting to know each other. Only three players return, not counting Monique Currie who missed 30 games with a knee injury (ACL).
Second-year coach Trudi Lacey rebuilt the team, mostly going to Chicago and Los Angeles for veteran help. That's not entirely a bad move. The Mystics were 6-28 last season, nearly the reverse of the 27-7 Lynx. A drastic situation calls for drastic action sometimes.
Here is how Washington's roster breaks down:
From Chicago: Dominique Canty, Michelle Snow and Lindsay Wisdom-Hylton
From Los Angeles: ex-Lynx Noelle Quinn and Natasha Lacy
From Seattle: Ashley Robinson
Rookie: Natalie Novosel, from Notre Dame ... teammate of Lynx Devereaux Peters
Holdovers: Crystal Langhorne, Matee Ajavon, Jasmine Thomas and Currie
Probable starters for Washington:
Monique Currie, 6-0 F ... avg. 14.5 points, 4.0 rebounds
Crystal Langhorne, 6-2 F ... avg. 15 points, 9.0 rebounds, two-time all-star
Ashley Robinson, 6-4 C ... avg. 7.0 points, 4.0 rebounds
Noelle Quinn, 6-0 G ... avg. 2.0 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists
Dominique Canty, 5-9 G ... avg. 3.0 points, 1.5 rebounds
Comments: The two forwards are the primary scoring threats ... until guard Matee Ajavon comes off the bench. She had 19 points and four steals as the Mystics won their last game, 64-61 over Tulsa, breaking a five-game losing streak going back to last season
Probable starters for Lynx
The same five players who have started 45 of the past 46 games since the start of the 2011 season: Whalen, Augustus, Brunson, Moore and McWilliams-Franklin.
Whalen averaged 16 points and six assists in two games against Washington last season. She shot 78.9 percent from the field.
* Mystics have not won back-to-back games since a six-game winning streak to end 2010 season
* Lynx are averaging a league-high 15.3 points per game and beating opponents by an average of 15.3 points. ... Best start in franchise history was 5-0 in 2008. Lynx can match that with a win against Mystics.
* Washington coach Lacey had her team bus out to the Potomac River for a day of Navy Seal boot camp this training camp. ... One of her assistants is Jennifer Gillom, the former Lynx assistant and head coach.
* Mystics have been turnover-prone, with 23 and 32 in two games.
* Washington went 1-13 in its last 14 games last season, losing by an average of 14.2 points.
* Among Lacey's key to beating Lynx: Limit them to one shot ... focus on team defense ... protect the three-point line (hear that Maya Moore?)
* Moore was five of seven on three-pointers on Sunday against Seattle.
* The Lynx have won six games in a row on the road.
* Nine WNBA teams have started 5-0. Seven won WNBA titles. One didn't make the playoffs, that would be the Lynx in 2008 who finished 16-18.
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