Minnesota
Connecticut Sun’s win over Minnesota Lynx delivers the perfect WNBA playoffs showdown
MINNEAPOLIS — Basketball might be a game of runs, but Connecticut vs. Minnesota basketball is a game of inches. Regardless of which arena, which lineup or which month — no two WNBA teams have been better matched, blow-for-blow, this season than these. The latest data point — Connecticut’s 73-70 win over Minnesota in Game 1 of the WNBA semifinals — was another one of those nail-biter, stomach-clenching, it’s-anyone’s-game kind of contests.
For that, basketball fans should rejoice. This is what you want to see in the playoffs. Two teams so perfectly matched that truly every possession — and really, every decision within every possession — could be the moment that changes everything.
That Marina Mabrey 3. No, it was the Bridget Carleton 3. Wait, it was that Alyssa Thomas shot feels most important. No way, that Alanna Smith block is going to change everything.
It was a game in which every moment felt monumental because you just knew the final margin would be microscopic. It’s a series that oozes with the parity of the 100-meter dash, a basketball game in need of whatever the equivalent of a photo finish might be.
THE ENGINE 🔥#BringTheHeat pic.twitter.com/6yDNLosIX8
— Connecticut Sun (@ConnecticutSun) September 30, 2024
The three regular-season matchups between Connecticut and Minnesota were decided by just eight total points. Heading into the fourth quarter of Sunday night’s game at Target Center, after 155 minutes of Lynx-Sun basketball this season, Minnesota — in aggregate — had outscored Connecticut by a single point (Lynx 295 – Sun 294).
“All season long, it has been a physical series. Every game has come down to the wire in the fourth quarter,” Sun forward Alyssa Thomas said. “We expected nothing less.”
In Game 1, Connecticut got the advantage, stealing a win on the road. Thomas, who finished one assist short of a triple-double, continued her season-long role as the Sun’s steadying force. She understood the gravity of each possession and her intention with which she pursued every rebound spoke to that.
Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve is well acquainted with Thomas’ specific kind of drive and how it can change possessions and games. It was the reason why, after being named the Paris Olympic coach in 2022, Reeve brought Thomas back into the player pool after a decade of Thomas declining camp invites.
On Sunday night, Thomas battled against Olympic teammate Napheesa Collier. After setting records in the first round of the playoffs, Collier was held to just 19 points and nine rebounds. On another night, that might feel like a pretty good stat line, but Collier — the Lynx’s catalyst — will likely remember the nine shots she missed or the 50-50 balls that went the other way. Pretty good is not good enough for a Minnesota-Connecticut game, and certainly not a WNBA semifinal matchup between the two.
Reeve emphasized that she was preparing the Lynx for the long haul against Connecticut. No one was planning on getting out of this matchup without going nine rounds. The 13 lead changes in Sunday’s game? That was to the script. So the Lynx going down 0-1? Not ideal, but also not a reason to panic. “It’s 40 minutes of 200 minutes,” Reeve said. “That’s the good news for us.”
It wasn’t the prettiest 40 minutes of basketball for either team, but with the two best defensive teams in the WNBA on the floor, pretty isn’t exactly the goal. Minnesota and Connecticut will look back at their game film and see plenty to clean up, but that’s only because the margin here is so small.
“The further you go in the playoffs, the harder it gets,” Reeve said. “Now it’s two teams just going back and forth, not making anything easy. And then it’s just about players finding a way to make a play.”
WATCH YA HEAD, T’S COMING. 🫣 pic.twitter.com/LwPw9Nu1zf
— Minnesota Lynx (@minnesotalynx) September 30, 2024
The good news for both teams is they have rosters full of players who can find ways to make plays. They might not have the free-agency name recognition or star power that the other semifinal between Las Vegas and New York has, but these rosters are stacked with players who created careers by making the most out of opportunities.
Mabrey, who was traded to Connecticut in July, has been a sharpshooting threat and pick-and-roll power for the Sun since her arrival. DeWanna Bonner quietly picks up double-doubles while being a matchup head-scratcher 14 years into her career. DiJonai Carrington, who played all 40 minutes on Sunday, has had a coming-out party in her first full season starting in the W.
Carleton, a second-round pick in 2019 (in a league in which lottery picks have been cut), has worked her way into the Lynx starting lineup and become “Big-shot B.C.” in the Twin Cities. Alanna Smith, who thought her WNBA career might be over when she was cut in 2022 by the five-win Fever, gives Collier — the WNBA Defensive Player of the Year — a run for her money as the league’s best undersized paint defender.
If the past is any indication, these two teams have a lot more (tightly contested) basketball to play. It’s the kind of basketball and importance a WNBA semifinals should exhibit. Both teams are preparing to deliver.
“It’s a long series,” Carleton said. “It’s a five-game series for a reason.”
(Photo of Napheesa Collier and Alyssa Thomas: David Berding / Getty Images)
With family by his side, Dennis “Bud” Peterson went to be with the Lord on the morning of June 1, 2026.
He was born at Drake, North Dakota on April 2, 1932 in the home of his parents Nick and Helen Peterson. The family moved to Duluth at the beginning of World War II.
After graduation from Duluth Central High School Bud served in the US Army in Korea during the Korean War, and received an Honorable Discharge with the rank of Sergeant. He used his GI Bill benefits to attend UMD receiving an Associate Degree, and also earned his Commercial Instrument Pilot rating.
Bud was a longtime employee of St. Louis County retiring as Supervisor of Roads and Bridges. In retirement he served as Boiler Engineer and a do it all repairman for Duluth Gospel Tabernacle. He generously devoted his time and talents as a consummate do it yourself repairman to all of his family.
Dennis is preceded in death by his parents, Nick & Helen Peterson; brother, Robert Peterson; sister, June (Don) Kruger; and infant brother and sister, James and Delores Peterson.
He is survived by his sister, Carol (Eli) Miletich; and numerous nieces and nephews all of whom he loved dearly.
At Bud’s request, his family will be holding a private funeral service. Arrangements by Dougherty Funeral Home 218-727-3555.
The Minnesota Department of Human Services is reexamining over 5,000 Medicaid service providers across the state in an effort to combat fraud.
The federal government said it would pull $2 billion in annual Medicaid funding from Minnesota in January if the state didn’t make changes.
The Minnesota Department of Human Services set out to revalidate thousands of providers in programs deemed high risk for fraud by asking providers to submit verification paperwork and making unannounced site visits. The deadline passed on Sunday.
The latest data, published on May 27, shows 1,009 providers approved, 1,151 disenrolled and over 3,000 providers with pending applications.
Paige Berland and Camille Heyman run Minnesota Behavioral Specialists, providing autism care to children through two locations in the metro area. The women say that after submitting their paperwork, they received letters from DHS with determinations for both locations: the Bloomington center was terminated and the Eagan office was approved.
“It doesn’t make sense, everything is the same minus the location,” Berland said. “So why was one approved and one wasn’t approved?”
The termination letter said the Bloomington center was denied because they failed to disclose a managing employee during a site visit. Berland disputes that and said she already submitted an appeal.
“We were told to keep running, keep continuing as we are while we go through this process,” she said. “It just means that we don’t have the money coming in.”
Josh Berg with Accessible Space says they’re also in limbo. Berg said they offer integrated community supports, which means caretakers provide in-unit assistance for people with spinal cord injuries and disabilities.
“Most of the folks that we support are wheelchair-bound,” Berg said. “Helping with meals, helping with medications, helping them just live their lives.”
Berg said that of the seven locations where people are housed, the Department of Human Services terminated five and approved two. He believes the timeline to conduct this revalidation process was too aggressive. He said Accessible Space has also submitted an appeal.
“We’re not able to bill for services, we’re not able to start new services for anybody or change any of the supports that they receive,” he said.
Both Berg and Berland say they agree fraud needs to be dealt with, but they hope Minnesotans who truly need services aren’t left without the services they need.
“Not just the clients rely on services, but the families do too, so we can’t stop services; that’s not an option on our plate,” Berland said. “We want to continue to provide these services; they are medically necessary.”
The Minnesota Department of Human Services said a disenrollment letter could be sent for a few reasons, including failure to submit revalidation application after two notification attempts, failure to provide all requested documents within the required timeframe and failure to meet the criteria required during an on-site visit.
A spokesperson for the Department of Human Services said it’s currently in the process of compiling data from the thousands of applications, but didn’t say when the department would share those final numbers.
-
Illinois2 minutes agoConsumer advocacy groups oppose Illinois American Water $142.4M rate hike and potential major acquisition
-
Indiana5 minutes agoPHOTOS | Restored fountains at Garfield Park Sunken Garden
-
Iowa10 minutes agoWaukee Northwest beats Urbandale in Iowa boys soccer state semifinal
-
Kansas17 minutes agoKansas City, Missouri, police searching for missing 11-year-old girl
-
Kentucky20 minutes agoKentucky Lottery Cash Ball, Pick 3 Evening winning numbers for June 3, 2026
-
Louisiana25 minutes agoDHS watchdog finds use-of-force issues and safety and sanitation concerns at Louisiana ICE center
-
Maine32 minutes ago‘I could die here’: Photographer recalls Maine wedding stabbing
-
Maryland35 minutes agoFull-length Replay: Maryland | FOX Sports
