Oh, what fun is this going to be.
Phoenix in the Western Conference finals. Bad girl Diana Taurasi -- did you see her go ballistic last night when she fouled out with more than six minutes to play against Seattle? Cussing up a storm -- bad word choice there maybe.
The Mercury also have incomparable Aussie Penny Taylor, Sixth Woman of the Year DeWanna Bonner and the highest scoring offense in the league. .... The only problem is, the Lynx still have work to do before that savory matchup is official.
Minnesota has to beat San Antonio. Certainly not a done deal even though they were 4-0 against the Silver Stars in the regular season and finished nine games ahead of them in the Western Conference standings.
In the regular season, the Silver Stars held the Lynx to an average of 72.25 points per game. In two playoff games, the Lynx scoring average has dipped even lower to 70.5 points, or 11 points under the 81.5 points they averaged in regular-season play -- second highest in the league behind you know who.
If the Lynx can beat the Silver Stars, expect a lot of scoring in the Lynx-Mercury series. The Lynx won the season series with Phoenix for the first time since 2004, but it was by just a 3-2 margin. Here are the scores:
July 13: Phoenix 112, Lynx 105 ... Lots of points, right? Actually this is the highest scoring game -- in regulation -- in WNBA history.
July 20: Lynx 106, Phoenix 98 ... This win in Arizona, in the game before the all-star break, catapulted the Lynx over the Mercury into first place in the West.