LYNX SCHEDULE Highlights

Lynx fans won't have to wait long for the drama. The team's 2016 schedule was announced Thursday, a 34-game slate that, thanks to the new balanced schedule, will include three games against all of the other 11 teams, plus one extra game against Seattle.

And the Lynx get a big one right out of the gate. Minnesota will open the season May 14 at Target Center against Diana Taurasi and the Phoenix Mercury. It is not only a rematch of last season's Western Conference finals, it also marks the return of Taurasi, who took last season off after leading the Mercury to the 2015 league title.

Here are other highlights of the Lynx schedule:

• Six games will be broadcast nationally on ESPN2 — May 14 vs. Phoenix; May 31 at New York; June 14 vs. Indiana; July 5 vs. Chicago; Aug. 28 vs. Seattle and Sept. 13 at Chicago.

• The Lynx will have two three-game homestands and one four-game road trip.

• The schedule runs from May 14 through Sept. 17, which includes a monthlong break to accommodate the Olympic Games.

Key first-half home games

The season opener vs. Phoenix, and the Mercury's return to Target Center on June 7; Indiana on May 27 in a rematch of last season's league finals; Los Angeles on June 24; New York on June 29; Chicago on July 5.

For the full schedule, turn to C7

Kent Youngblood