Kayla McBride mentioned regardless of how drained she was after flying into Los Angeles from Turkey, she was thrilled to be enjoying once more within the WNBA. And the Minnesota Lynx have been simply as thrilled to have her.

McBride scored a team-high 24 factors, together with the game-winning 3-point play on a reverse layup with 2.1 seconds remaining, to steer the Lynx to their first victory of the season. After beginning 0-4 and going by a number of personnel strikes partially as a consequence of accidents, the Lynx beat the Sparks 87-84 on Tuesday night time.

McBride helped Fenerbaçhe Safiport win the Turkish League title on Sunday after which hopped on a flight for Los Angeles.

“The entire trip right here, I am interested by how grateful I’m to do what I do,” McBride mentioned. “Being an expert athlete, it is solely going to final so lengthy. So you must grind, however the chemistry, how a lot we grew simply tonight, is value it.

“I perceive what this Lynx tradition is about. That is what makes me wish to present up and provides no matter I can. As exhausted as I’m, I am tremendous grateful I confirmed up for my workforce. We wanted that. There isn’t any method I might have been sitting on that sideline at present.”

As an alternative, she performed practically 38 minutes. McBride, a 5-foot-10 guard who was the No. 3 total select of Notre Dame in 2014, was the Lynx’s third-leading scorer in 2021. That was her first season in Minnesota, leaving Las Vegas to signal as a free agent.

Napheesa Collier, final season’s scoring chief for Minnesota, is out indefinitely on being pregnant go away, and high-profile signings Angel McCoughtry and Odyssey Sims are now not with the workforce. Thus, the Lynx had one other tough starting to the season. Final 12 months, in addition they began 0-4, however then made the playoffs.

Coach and common supervisor Cheryl Reeve mentioned that whereas the various personnel strikes the Lynx have needed to make already “weren’t excellent,” she felt issues would work themselves out — particularly as soon as McBride returned.

With it being star heart Sylvia Fowles’ final WNBA season, the Lynx wish to shortly get again on the successful monitor — and so they took their first step towards that Tuesday. Fowles had 20 factors and 12 rebounds, whereas guard Moriah Jefferson, who joined the Lynx final week after being waived by Dallas, had 20 factors, seven rebounds and 6 assists.

“We knew what our challenges have been, and it was crucial for us to answer a few of these challenges so we might have some stability for the long term,” Reeve mentioned. “You’ve got seen Kayla’s influence when it comes to tempo of play, that you have to guard her. That simply gave us one other dimension.

“I knew she can be in form as a result of she was coming off enjoying [overseas]. I do not essentially like enjoying her that many minutes, however she was that good. She’s a captain of this workforce and desires her play to be contagious. It was all that after which some.”