Photo Credit: Jean Pieri, Pioneer Press

Game no. 5 - 2017 WNBA Finals

Minnesota Lynx vs. Los Angeles Sparks @ Williams Arena

Wednesday, October 4, 2017

By now, the news is out: closing out the finals at 3-2 in the best of 5 series with an 85-76 win at home against the Los Angeles Sparks Wednesday night. Minnesota Lynx have scored their 4th WNBA championship title in 4 years, the most championships of any active franchise right next to the Houston Comets, who have the most titles in WNBA history.

Closing their regular season with a total of 27 wins, it's fair to note that they were the best in the league, there was an apparent confidence that haloed over them, especially coming into a winner takes all match up. Most of the game, however, it was assumed that Sparks would be the final contenders walking away with that title trophy, but, gyal, was I wrong!

Game 5 was an intense battle of rebounds, with smart strategy play execution coming from both teams. Candace Parker dominated her side of the court, but her energy was offset by two lead scorers for the Lynx, Maya Moore and WNBA MVP, Sylvia Fowles. All of 5 Lynx' starting lineup ended with double digits in points and assists. Aside from that, it's always nice to see two of my all time faves, and 2 out of the 5 of the top powerhouses in the WNBA, face off.

At the half, Lynx were leading the game 19 points. But by the last 35 seconds of the game, Sparks caught up. For a moment, the game was starting to look pretty promising for Los Angeles. However, a back court save from Seimone Augustus, followed by an impulsive, yet clutch jump shot by Maya Moore at the 27-ish mark, is what ultimately saved the day. What a smooth pull-up! There was no way Los Angeles would be able to bounce back from that one.