Ann Wauters' 13-foot jump shot from the lane took one bounce on the front of the rim -- as the final horn blew -- then dropped in.
As the ball sank, so did the Lynx's hopes of creating a little cushion for themselves in the Western Conference standings.
Wauters' basket gave San Antonio an 89-87 victory Sunday at Target Center and enabled the Silver Stars to close within a half-game of the third-place Lynx.
"We really needed this one," said Becky Hammon, who fed Wauters the ball in the closing seconds while driving to the hoop. "They're a team we're competing with for the playoffs."
San Antonio's chances of a playoff spot with a top-four finish in the West improved a lot Aug. 1 when Wauters rejoined the team. The 6-4 Belgian center took the first half of her seventh WNBA season off to rest. She had been playing basketball year-round in the U.S. and overseas.
"Becky made a great play," Wauters said. "She found me. I was open, so I had to make that last shot."
Wauters, playing in her fourth game, finished with 13 points and six rebounds. She was 5-for-7 from the field.
The officials looked at a replay to make sure time had not expired before Wauters' shot. It was a brief review.
"[Wauters] is a big presence inside," Lynx coach Jen Gillom said. "She disrupted a lot of our shots which normally we would make. Ruth Riley [Wauters' backup] is not as quick as she is or as agile as she is. That was a huge addition for them, but I still think we can beat them."
San Antonio is 2-1 against the Lynx (11-11) this season; the visiting team has won every game.
Not only are the Silver Stars (10-11) on the Lynx's heels now; Los Angeles (7-11) is only two games behind the Lynx and has four games in hand.
The Lynx thrilled an announced crowd of 7,764 with their late rally. Minnesota trailed San Antonio 67-50 before ending the third quarter with a 10-2 run, and the Lynx kept closing. Center Nicky Anosike's three-pointer with 21 seconds -- her first in the WNBA -- left tied the score at 87-87. The Lynx never touched the ball again.
Anosike finished with a game-high 24 points; Hammon, who made four three-pointers, had 22 for San Antonio.
The Lynx shot 51.5 percent from the field, had a 48-32 advantage in points in the paint and 13-7 in fast-break points.
"The only difference in the game: They shot really well from the three," Gillom said. "A few of them were open, but a lot of [their] threes were contested and they made them."
The Silver Stars were 13 of 33 three-pointers, the Lynx four of 13.
"No matter the deficit," Lynx rookie guard Renee Montgomery said, "we always come back and always still feel that we can win. I think that's a good thing. You need that, and now we have to finish the game."
