MINNEAPOLIS — The Indiana Fever arrived in Minneapolis Friday afternoon, ahead of Game 1 of the WNBA Finals that tips at 3:00 p.m. ET and airs nationally on ABC. VigilantSports.com is in Minneapolis and has you covered all series long.
The Fever know this route. Been there, won that.
It was in 2012, they arrived here and everyone counted them out. Katie Douglas’ bad ankle prevented her from participating in the series and Jeanette Pohlen tore her left ACL in Game 2.
Been there, still won that.
Indiana’s resiliency, an attribute they’ve always had, is something sports fans have to appreciate. They’ve had their share of troubles throughout the season: the 3-6 slow start to the season, Shavonte Zellous missing time both because of a back injury and she planned to play in the FIBA Americas, Erlana Larkins has had knee issues, and Natalie Achonwa was away from the team not once, but twice because she played with the Canadian National team.
[From July: Fever puzzle coming together]
Never mind that the Minnesota Lynx had the league’s second-best record — tops in the West (22-12) — during the regular season. Or, how they have FIVE Olympians on their roster. Basketball fans know the names: Maya Moore, Seimone Augustus, Lindsay Whalen, Sylvia Foles, and Asjha Jones.
In coach Cheryl Reeve, a longtime assistant in Detroit under Bill Laimbeer (ugh!), the Lynx have a tested and feisty coach who is known to throw her jacket in disgust. (It happened in Game 2 back in 2012.)
The Fever, meanwhile, took an irregular path to the WNBA Finals, losing in Game 1 of both the conference semi-finals and finals before rallying to win the final two games.
The WNBA Finals is a best-of-five series in a 2-2-1 format.
What Stephanie White has done in her first season as head coach — at any level — has been mighty impressive, but not surprising coming from someone who knows her well. 20 wins in the regular season, finishing second in the league’s Coach of the Year voting (behind Laimbeer), becoming the first rookie head coach in the WNBA Finals. White doesn’t care about all that. She’s after a championship, just as the team’s leader, Tamika Catchings, and the other 11 players are focused on getting one.
The Lynx won the two head-to-head regular season battles, but you can throw that out. It didn’t mean anything in the Fever’s series against Chicago and it didn’t really matter in the conference finals. It’s the postseason. Both teams know one another’s players and schemes very well. It’s about execution, maneuvering, and playing with heart.
The Fever are shaped by their defensive mindset and Catchings, the three-time Olympic Gold Medalist who’s planning to retire at the end of next season. (This could be Catchings’ last Finals of her illustrious career. She absolutely does not take them for granted. Trust me.)
The Fever must body-up the Lynx and make them uncomfortable early. Once the Lynx get going, with the array of weapons in their arsenal, they are incredibly difficult to quiet. The Fever got to hold their own on the boards. They’re not a great rebounding team but they can’t get pummeled on the glass. Taking care of the ball, as always, is critically important but especially so against the Lynx. Turn it over and you might as well punch two points on the scoreboard.
I’m curious to see what kind of impact Erlana Larkins has on this series. She’s a relentless big whose primary job is to grab every ball that doesn’t go through the hoop. On the offensive end, she can finish around the hoop and push her opponent around. Larkins was the Fever’s most underrated player en route to the franchise’s first and only WNBA Championship.
Oh man, this series is going to be a fun one. Plenty more coverage to come all week long here on VigilantSports.com, and be sure to also follow me on Twitter, @ScottAgness.
Game 2 at the Target Center will be on Tuesday at 8:00 p.m. (ESPN2), and then the series moves to Indianapolis for Games 3 and 4, if necessary, on Friday and Sunday, respectively.