Lynx 86, Sun 80: Back to the frustrating losses

Yeah, I probably jinxed it, talking about how important Brittany Griner is to what the Sun are doing and her playing 34 minutes in the Minnesota win Monday seemed a bit ominous given her recent injury history.

Sure enough, Griner not only missed Wednesday, but will miss Friday’s game against Golden State as well, which does not bode well for what’s down the road in 2026, either. The Sun also lost Saniya Rivers to an ankle sprain in the second quarter. Rivers is having a miserable offensive season, but looked on her way to a decent game before going down. Thankfully Rivers’ injury does not seem ultra serious, she might miss a few games.


And Aneesah Morrow’s somewhat mysterious absence continues, although it looks like Friday will be the last game she misses.


Even with all that going on, there were the Sun holding a fourth quarter lead against (an albeit also shorthanded) league-leading Minnesota Wednesday night in.


Then we looked up and saw a lineup full of rookies, including Gianna Kneepkens and Reagan Beers, who had barely played, was on the court. And then - like it has several times this season - the lead was gone.


That’s not entirely fair to players like Kneepkens, of course, who hit a pair of three-pointers, and on the worst shooting team in the league, can actually shoot. But she’s very raw everywhere else, and to see her in that kind of spot while Aaliyah Edwards rides the pain, was a bit frustrating.


Edwards has bit a bit frustrating, certainly to Meziane. Her hustle and offensive rebounding ability should be paying dividends, but they come with self-inflicted errors and a lot of missed layups (she’s shooting just 58.3% on layups, compared to 75.6% for Olivia Nelson-Ododa). 


She’ll have another chance Friday night, but she is one of several tough decisions for the franchise to make before their move to Houston.


What else did we see in the Sun’s 86-80 loss to Minnesota at Mohegan Sun Arena Wednesday?:




 

  1. Fourth quarter blues  - The final tally was 26-15 for Minnesota in the fourth quarter Wednesday. If you take the recent lopsided impressive wins over Washington and Chicago out of the mix, the last time the Sun outscored an opponent in the fourth quarter was May. We know they’re young, but it has to be a focus of what they’re doing going forward. Unless they’re tanking, but as I’ve pointed out, there’s no real reason to. Unless you really think it’s going to be JuJu Watkins and you want more ping pong balls than Chicago (which doesn’t even own their own pick), in which case you have to finish two games behind them. 

  2. More Nell Angloma? - Speaking of raw, there’s Nell Angloma, but she put up 10 points and a team-high seven rebounds in just 15 minutes. She’s not as physically strong as Edwards at the moment, but she certainly seems to have potential to be a solid WNBA player, so if you’re not going to play Edwards, why not more Angloma? I guess we’ll find out Friday.

  3. The big shot -  Whereas Kennedy Burke hit the big shot Monday, it was not forthcoming Wednesday, as Burke finished just 1-for-8 from the field with three points. That leaves pretty much no one you trust to hit an outside shot down the stretch (hence Kneepkens’ inclusion, I guess). In the future, you hope it can be someone like Lacan, I guess, who we forget just turned 22, but right now, it’s going to be tough. 


Player of the game:  Leila Lacan - Lacan had just one steal, but also just one turnover to go with 15 points, six rebounds, and six assists. Meziane was trying to get her some rest (maybe too much?), but it was a struggle when she wasn’t in the game.


Inside the numbers : 12 -  Number of games that developmental players can play in this season, so it stands to reason we’ll see either Hailey Van Lith or Ashlon Jackson Friday against Golden State.


Under the radar: That was probably Reagan Beers’ worst game as a pro, perhaps a lot of rust after not appearing much lately, which seemed more odd that she was playing in a big spot. I guess you can make a case with Griner, Morrow, and Rivers all out that there weren’t too many other options, but it’s still tough to watch.


The Sun did shoot 22-for-27 at the free throw line (81%), with Miller (9-for-9) leading the way, so maybe there’s hope on that front?


Quotable:  “We lost our minds in the last quarter. I think our skill was good, that was not the big issue for us, it was more about details and some defensive principles." - Rachid Meziane


Next up: Friday vs. Golden State, 7:30 p.m.

Comments

  1. SosJuly 10, 2026 at 6:43 AM

    Good recap as always! Not a biggie but one type slipped through …rides the pain should be rides the pine (this season both may be correct). Rotations have been odd all season but hopefully tonight’s game the Sun can upset the Valkyries.

    ReplyDelete

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