LeBron who? Brunson headlines Lynx win

BY MIKE PEDEN

With many basketball fans glued to anything that would give them an update on where LeBron James would head Thursday night, perhaps it was fitting that he selected the Miami Heat.

Heat propelled Minnesota Lynx forward Rebekkah Brunson as she notched her eighth double-double this season against the San Antonio Silver Stars at Target Center. Her 24 points and 10 rebounds set the Lynx on a cruise with an 89-66 win, marking the 13th time out of 14 games where the Lynx defeated the Stars at home.

"We had energy on the court. We had energy on the bench," Brunson said. "We threw (San Antonio) off their rhythm. We were scrappy. That's the way we need to play."

The Lynx (6-11) led for virtually the entire game, shooting above 50 percent for the night. Rebounding was the usual Lynx savior, with Minnesota out-rebounding San Antonio (6-10) 38-19, giving the Lynx a 16-point edge in second chance points.

The Lynx employed a much quicker tempo compared to previous home visits. Brunson and veteran forward Seimone Augustus fed off each other as Augustus finished with 15 points and five assists. Their domination opened the floor and removed early-season pressure for rookie guard Monica Wright, who matched Augustus' point total for the night.

"We knew what we could do, and we zoned in on that," Brunson said. "I got a lot of great looks, Seimone got a lot of great looks and everyone on the team played well."

"Coach (Cheryl Reeve) talked about passing and competing. I wanted to jump on that bandwagon and be intense tonight," Augustus said.

The win started a long home-stand for the Lynx, where they will play eight of their next nine games in downtown Minneapolis, and concluded the first half of the regular season. A 6-11 record any other season would have them chasing a playoff spot, but a struggling Western Conference has the Lynx a half-game behind San Antonio for second in the West.

That also means the playoff race remains wide open behind conference leader Seattle and a large opportunity for the Lynx to gain a cushion.

"This was the chemistry game. Now we've found our niche and we're ready to go," Augustus said.

"We don't have another game that we can lose and not be concerned with," Brunson said.

Former Lynx player Roneeka Hodges led the Stars with 15 points off the bench, largely due to the shooting woes of their starters, who made just eight of 39 field goals combined.

"Our offense usually gets our defense going, and unfortunately, we didn't get a rhythm to let that happen tonight," said San Antonio head coach Sandy Brondello.

The Stars return to Target Center July 22, with the two teams trading blowouts in the first two games of the series.