Napheesa Collier scored 32 points with nine rebounds, two assists and two steals in her first game back after missing seven with an ankle sprain
Minnesota Lynx overturned a 10-point first-quarter deficit, outscoring Indiana Fever 27-15 in the second to take control
Courtney Williams added 14 points and 10 assists, praising Collier’s return as the Lynx improved after a 5-2 stretch without their star
Napheesa Collier was thrilled to return to the Minnesota Lynx lineup as she helped secure a win over the Indiana Fever.
MVP candidate Collier missed seven games after spraining her ankle against the Las Vegas Aces on August 2.
The forward marked her return in style as she scored 32 points, shooting two from three from beyond the arc, while also registering nine rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Minnesota went 5-2 in Collier's absence, with the 28-year-old admitting it was hard to watch from the sidelines.
"I had to knock some of the rust off," Collier said while joking that team-mate Courtney Williams would have finished with 11 assists if she had made her first few shots.
"It feels like you're on the outside when you're not playing. I'm having so much FOMO, so it feels good to be on the court with them again."
Williams, who finished with 14 points and 10 assists, added: "I told [Collier] before the game, I'm sick of taking 18, 20 shots. I'm ready to be back to 10 or 12. So it feels good to have Phee back."
The Fever led by as many as 10 points in the first quarter, but the Lynx responded fiercely in the second as they outscored Indiana 27-15.
Collier secured their first lead of the game since the opening 20 seconds with a turnaround jumper last in the second quarter, and the Lynx did not look back.
"She's [Collier] that darn good," said Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve.
"Obviously, she was ready to play. Having her play makes it easier for everyone else. We can all settle back into our roles and things we like to do.
“It all stemmed from being more active defensively, that's how we got going. We just had more flow that second quarter, we felt that shift.
"We felt that shift in how we were playing, and I felt like we held that for most of the rest of the game."
