Lynx lose Collier with bad back, Williams leads rally past Aces into Commissioner’s Cup final

Courtney Williams scored 18 of her 20 points in the second half to rally the Minnesota Lynx to a spot in the Commissioner’s Cup final with a 76-62 win over the Las Vegas Aces on Tuesday night despite losing Napheesa Collier to a bad back early in the third quarter.

The Lynx, who won the Commissioner’s Cup, last year, will be home against the Indiana Fever on July 1 in a game that does not count in the standings but gives players a financial bonus.

Despite being without MVP A’ja Wilson for the third-straight game the Aces led by as many as 14 points and were up 39-30 at halftime. It was the lowest scoring half of the season for Minnesota.

Collier, runner-up in the MVP voting last year, scored her seventh point early in the second half but left at the 7:57 mark and didn’t return. Alanna Smith helped pick up the slack with 10 points and 13 rebounds.

Reserves Diamond Miller and Natisha Hiedeman gave the Lynx (11-1) a big boost with 12 points each. Williams had five assists, four rebounds, three steals and two blocks.

Jewell Loyd had 12 points and Tiffany Mitchell added 10 for Las Vegas (5-6).

Smith gave the Lynx their first lead of the game with her first points, a layup at 4:14 of the third quarter that made it 45-43. Smith added a layup for a 56-52 lead entering the fourth.

Las Vegas finished with 21 turnovers that were turned into 27 points. The Aces went 6 for 18 between baskets as a four-point deficit ballooned to 16.

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AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball

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