With 7 minutes and 13 seconds left in the third quarter of Thursday's game at Target Center, the visiting Los Angeles Sparks held a nine-point lead over a Lynx team that, shorthanded again, was struggling to score.
Some of that didn't change. For the second consecutive game, with Sylvia Fowles back but with Layshia Clarendon still out and Damiris Dantas done for the season, the Lynx could not find an offensive rhythm.
But that defense …
Over the final 17:13 of the game the Sparks made three field goals and scored 12 points. In the fourth quarter the Sparks were held to four points on 1-for-14 shooting as the Lynx, flying around, helping out, communicating, shut them down.
The result: 66-57 Lynx, their fourth straight win and 12th in 14 games.
"That's a lot of stops,'' said Aerial Powers. "That's a lot of hard work. The thing about defense is it takes everybody.''
Offense? Just enough. Fowles, on Tuesday named Western Conference player of the month for August, returned, the sore shoulder that held her out of Thursday's win over New York bandaged and padded, and scored 15 points with 17 rebounds. Kayla McBride scored 17 with six boards. Powers, getting closer to being herself in her third game back since thumb surgery, scored 13, including a key three-pointer with 3:11 left that put the Lynx up five.
With Dantas out with a Lisfranc injury in her right foot and Clarendon out at least until next week, the Lynx (16-7) shot just 34.5 %, making just seven of 22 threes. Napheesa Collier, the focus of the L.A. defense, was held to five points. Take away Fowles' 7-for-10 performance and the rest of the Lynx shot 13-for-48 (27.1 %).
