WNBA Wrap: Lynx Top Liberty In Finals Rematch; Wilson Stars As Aces Beat Sun

Kayla McBride made four 3-pointers to finish with 18 points, DiJonai Carrington added 15 points off the bench, and the Minnesota Lynx beat the New York Liberty 83-71 on Sunday in a rematch of last year’s WNBA Finals.

The win was the fifth in a row for the league-leading Lynx (27-5), who visited Barclays Center for the first time since losing Game 5 of the Finals last fall.

The two contenders will meet two more times over the next nine days. Minnesota leads the season series 2-0.

Both sides were short-handed on Sunday, as the Lynx played without league scoring leader Napheesa Collier (ankle) and the Liberty were without Breanna Stewart (knee).

Courtney Williams had 14 points and seven assists for the Lynx, while Alanna Smith stuffed the stat sheet with eight points, nine rebounds and seven assists.

With the loss, the Liberty (20-11) dropped into a tie with the Atlanta Dream for the best record in the Eastern Conference. New York is  5-5 over its last 10 games.

Natasha Cloud paced New York with 14 points, six rebounds and five assists. Sabrina Ionescu scored 10 points but was 4 of 15 from the field and 0 for 6 from 3-point range.

Wilson makes history, lifts Aces

A’ja Wilson became the first player in WNBA history to record a 30-20 game as the Las Vegas Aces beat the Connecticut Sun 94-86.

Wilson finished with 32 points, tied a career high with 20 rebounds and chipped in five assists in one of the best games of the three-time MVP’s career.

Connecticut held a 45-33 lead with 5:46 left in the second quarter, but Las Vegas finished the first half on a 12-0 run to go into the break tied.

Jackie Young contributed 21 points and six assists for the Aces (18-14), who won their fourth consecutive game.

Marina Mabrey led the Sun (5-25) with 22 points, shooting 8 for 16 from the field and 5 of 13 from behind the 3-point line.

Leila Laclan added 13 points, while Saniya Rivers scored 17 off the bench.

Dream stifles Mercury to extend run

Allisha Gray led a balanced attack with 17 points, Brionna Jones and Naz Hillmon both recorded double-doubles and the Atlanta Dream beat the Phoenix Mercury 74-66 in a matchup of playoff contenders.

Gray shot 6 for 12 from the field, adding five rebounds and five assists in 37 minutes as the Dream (20-11) won their fifth straight game to pull into a tie with the New York Liberty for the best record in the Eastern Conference.

Jones finished with 15 points, 11 rebounds and four blocked shots, while Hillmon had 13 points and 13 rebounds.

The Mercury fell to 19-12 and are 4-6 over their last 10 games.

Alyssa Thomas had 21 points, eight rebounds and five assists in the losing effort.