Sun-Lynx by the numbers: What to know for WNBA semifinal series

Sun-Lynx by the numbers: What to know for WNBA semifinal series originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The WNBA semifinals will feature a pair of playoff rematches.

While the Las Vegas Aces and New York Liberty square off on one side of the bracket in a rematch of the 2023 WNBA Finals, the Connecticut Sun and Minnesota Lynx have a score to settle, as well, after battling in last year’s opening round.

The No. 3 Sun advanced to the WNBA semifinals for the sixth straight year after sweeping Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever out of the first round. Now, they will face a much tougher test as they continue to chase their first WNBA title.

Though the Sun have a more fitting name, no team is hotter than the Lynx entering the WNBA semifinals. The team has lost just two games since the middle of July, and one came after they had already clinched the league’s No. 2 seed. Minnesota is coming off a first-round sweep of the Phoenix Mercury in which Napheesa Collier made league history.

Who will come out on top and punch their ticket to the 2024 WNBA Finals? Let’s break it down.

Sun-Lynx playoff schedule

The Sun-Lynx series will tip-off on Sunday, Sept. 29.

The Lynx will have home court and host Games 1, 2 and 5, while Games 3 and 4 will be played in Connecticut.

• Game 1: Sunday, Sept. 29, 8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN

• Game 2: Tuesday, Oct. 1, TBD

• Game 3: Friday, Oct. 4, 7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2

• Game 4: Sunday, Oct. 6, TBD (if necessary)

• Game 5: Tuesday, Oct. 8, TBD, ESPN2 (if necessary)

2024 Sun-Lynx season series

If the regular season series was any indication, the Sun-Lynx semifinal showdown could go down as a classic.

The Sun won the season series 2-1 and outscored the Lynx by a combined four points across those three games.

Connecticut won the first matchup 83-82 in overtime on May 23 and picked up a July 4 road win over the Lynx on July 4. Minnesota then won a 78-76 thriller in the penultimate game of the season on Sept. 17.

Sun-Lynx all-time series

The Sun lead the all-time regular season series against the Lynx 32-27.

When it comes to the playoffs, the 2023 first-round series between the Sun and Lynx marked the first time the two franchises had ever squared off in the postseason.

The Sun won Game 1 before the Lynx earned a road win in Game 2 to force the series to Minnesota for a decisive Game 3. Connecticut took a first-half lead in the winner-take-all contest and didn’t look back, earning a 90-75 win to advance.

How many WNBA championships do the Sun and Lynx have?

The Sun are one of two teams left in the 2024 playoffs chasing after its first championship, joining the Liberty. Connecticut has reached the WNBA Finals four times, most recently in 2022, but has yet to win a title.

The Lynx, meanwhile, are tied with the Seattle Storm and Houston Comets for the most WNBA championships all-time with four. The team won all four of those titles between 2011 and 2017 with Maya Moore.

Napheesa Collier vs. Alyssa Thomas

Collier has put the Lynx on her back as of late.

The four-time All-Star finished second in WNBA MVP voting behind unanimous winner A’ja Wilson, but Collier has taken her game — and scoring, in particular — to new heights in the playoffs. She scored 80 points across the Lynx’s two first-round victories over the Mercury, becoming the first player in WNBA history to average 40 points per game in a playoff series.

Alyssa Thomas, meanwhile, has been the Sun’s engine for years with her all-around game. The five-time All-Star placed fifth in MVP voting a year after finishing as the runner-up and racked up three triple-doubles during the regular season.