The Lynx, one of the highest-scoring, best-shooting teams in the WNBA, had an awful night trying to find the basket on Tuesday.
And the cold shooting came at a bad time, on national TV, against the team with the best record in the league.
Connecticut, inspired by Barbara Turner's 18 points off the bench, beat the Lynx 75-66 at Target Center before an announced crowd of 7,186. It was the fifth consecutive victory for the Sun (8-1).
Five days ago, the Sun beat the Lynx 78-77 in Connecticut. This time it was just as close for a while -- the game was tied at 55, 57 and 59. Then Jamie Carey, a backup Sun point guard wearing a clear, plastic mask to protect a bruised nose and face, hit a three-pointer. It put the Sun ahead to stay at 62-59 with 4:25 left.
Later, a 7-0 Connecticut run, which former Gophers star Lindsay Whalen started with a layup and Turner finished with a three-pointer from 27 feet and a layup, gave the Sun a commanding 69-61 lead with 1:42 left.
Commanding? On this night it was, considering the Lynx shot a season-low 33.3 percent, an easily calculated but ugly-looking 25-for-75. Minnesota had been averaging 46.2 percent from the field.
"We missed some good looks, but that is going to happen to teams," Lynx coach Don Zierden said.
Added Zierden: "You are going to have nights where you can't shoot the ball. And we have been telling our players that those are the nights that you've got to hang in there defensively.
"And we did for a little bit. But then in the third quarter we started to let Barbara Turner get going. And they hit the big three by Carey."
The Lynx (6-2), a team which has rallied several times to win games this season and pushed the Sun to the buzzer in their first meeting Friday, had no late surge Tuesday.
Seimone Augustus was 4-for-13 from the floor and had only 11 points but did have a career-high 10 assists. Also struggling were rookies Charde Houston (3-for-11 for seven points) and Nicky Anosike (2-for-11 for five points).
Fellow rookie Candice Wiggins scored a game-high 22 points, but she also missed some shots that normally drop for her.
The Lynx also had trouble at the free-throw line, making 13 of 20.
"You can't continually shoot a high percentage the entire 34 games; it's too difficult," Lynx veteran guard Anna DeForge said. "If nothing is working for you offensively, you've got to turn it up defensively. You've got to get stops."
The Sun outscored the Lynx 27-15 in the fourth quarter.
Note • Second-year Lynx point guard Lindsey Harding, out since the start of the season because of a stress fracture in her left kneecap, is scheduled to participate in her first full workout today. She had been practicing on a limited basis since Monday.
