Minnesota Lynx’s Napheesa Collier gestures after making a three-point shot in the second quarter of Game 2 against the Phoenix Mercury at Target Center in Minneapolis on September 25, 2024. (Photo by Steven Maturen/Getty Images)
While one of the University of Connecticut’s legendary players is preparing to say goodbye, another is just getting started in his career.
Diana Taurasi hasn’t spoken about potentially retiring after 20 seasons in the WNBA, but if Wednesday was her final game, she’ll have done so at the hands of another UConn player whose legend is just beginning.
Napheesa Collier had a 42-point performance in Game 2 of the first round, leading the No. 2 Lynx to a 101-88 victory over the No. 7 Mercury. A day earlier, Collier had spoken about playing against Taurasi and what it was like playing against her.
“It’s kind of a retirement tour for her,” Collier said, “I don’t know. She hasn’t really talked about it much. But she’s obviously a great player at the University of Connecticut and the GOAT of the league.”
“So I feel blessed to have had the opportunity to play alongside her and against her on the U.S. national team and hopefully we can finish her career on Wednesday.”
At that last comment a sly smile spread across Collier’s face. She was joking… sort of.
Collier wanted to win Game 2 at all costs, rather than have a Game 3 decision in Phoenix, and she did everything in her power to make that happen. In the sweep, Collier scored 80 total points, her most in two consecutive playoff games, and her 42 points tied the postseason record for most points scored in a single game.
But when Collier looked at the box score after the game, only one thought ran through her mind.
“I should have made the free throws,” she said with that same sly smile.
Collier made 12 of 14 free throws and was one away from breaking the single-game scoring record, but head coach Cheryl Reeve couldn’t help but praise Collier for her stellar performance in the series.
“She tied the one-game record, but I own the two-game record,” Reeve said, “so she’s first in that regard.”
Collier has been Minnesota’s driving force this season, averaging 20.4 points per game and finishing second in MVP voting. When the Lynx need points, Collier is the one to get them. Game 1 was a perfect example of this, as Minnesota battled a tenacious Mercury team that went from trailing by 23 at halftime to trailing by one in the fourth quarter. Collier scored 38 points in that win, and Reeve spoke about it in the locker room before Game 2.
“I told my team before the game, ‘Look, she’s not going to score 38 tonight,’ and she came out and said, ‘Coach, you were right.’ She scored 42,” Reeve said with a laugh, “so that was an incredible run.”
Collier scored in a variety of ways in Wednesday’s win. She got to the hoop, finished from mid-range and knocked down a 3-pointer. Collier shot 70 percent from the field in Game 2 and 57.9 percent in Game 1.
“Fee has the ability to know game by game what she’s going to get and how to get it,” Reeve said. “If she’s allowed to get in the paint, she’s going to find herself in the paint. … She knows how to play on the move, get on the perimeter and shoot the basketball. She finds different ways to impact the game.”
With the win over Phoenix, the No. 2 Lynx advance to the semifinals against No. 3 Connecticut. The teams have met three times this season. Connecticut won the first game 83-81 in overtime and the second 78-73, while Minnesota most recently won 78-76 on Sept. 17.
Collier led the Lynx in scoring through both games, scoring 31 points in Game 1 and 25 points in Game 2.
