Lynx unravel in crunch time, fall to Mercury for third regular season loss

The Lynx fell apart down the stretch and dropped just their third regular season game of the year on Wednesday afternoon in Phoenix.

With five minutes left in the contest, the Lynx led 67-60. But with All-Star Alyssa Thomas leading the way, the Mercury ripped off a 19-4 run to close out the game, securing a 79-71 victory.

The Lynx didn't score in the final 2:56 of action and committed a couple crucial turnovers during that span. Meanwhile, Thomas scored 10 points in the final five minutes, converting several clutch buckets to help her team pull away.

Thomas finished her day with 29 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals. The Mercury were playing without top scorer Satou Sabally and have been without Kahleah Copper for most of the season, so Thomas picked up the scoring slack in an incredible performance.

Courtney Williams led the Lynx with 21 points, 6 boards, and 5 assists. Napheesa Collier added 18 points and 7 rebounds, making it a relatively quiet night by her MVP-level standards. Minnesota's other three starters — Kayla McBride, Alanna Smith, and Bridget Carleton — combined for 18 points on 7-of-24 shooting.

The Lynx are now 18-3. The Mercury, at 14-6, pulled to within three games of their lead in the WNBA standings.

This one started at 12:30 p.m. local time (2:30 CT) in Phoenix because it was camp day, which meant the building was packed with groups of local children. The start time may have contributed to a somewhat sloppy first quarter that saw both teams shoot poorly from the field.

It was a back-and-forth affair all afternoon. The Lynx led by four after the first quarter, but the Mercury took a three-point lead into halftime. Minnesota then led by five after a strong third quarter, only to be outscored by 13 in the fourth.

The Mercury managed to win despite going 1 for 16 from three-point range. The Lynx weren't much better, shooting 26 percent from deep and 40 percent overall. They committed seven more turnovers than Phoenix and made five fewer free throws.

Next up for the Lynx is another camp day game, this one against the Los Angeles Sparks at 2:00 p.m. CT on Thursday. It's Minnesota's second back-to-back of the past week and their fifth game in an eight-day span.