Whalen shines against former Sun teammates

BY MIKE PEDEN

For the second time this season, the Minnesota Lynx were one-upped by bigger names in the sports world. The first was in July, when LeBron James announced his relocation to the Miami Heat. This time, reports of Minnesota Vikings quarterback Brett Favre contemplating retirement dominated the headlines.

Call it upstaging, but the story may have been the best fit for Lynx guard Lindsay Whalen. Two days after her brother-in-law was found dead in Pelican Lake, Whalen scored a season-high 27 points and tied her season high in assists with 12 as the Lynx defeated the Connecticut Sun 111-103 in overtime Tuesday night at Target Center.

Seven years ago, when Favre was with the Green Bay Packers, his father died a day before Favre was set to play a Monday night game against the Oakland Raiders. He responded by throwing four touchdown passes, earning 399 yards en route to a 41-7 win in what is now one of the most memorable Monday night games in history.

"We come off a big win against Seattle and tried to use that momentum going in tonight," Whalen said. "Everyone was just finding their shot."

The Lynx (9-16) found many in the first half, shooting 60% from the floor and building up a 30-point lead at one point in the second quarter before heading to the locker room with a 22-point halftime lead. However, the Lynx's inability to maintain those leads continued, when former UConn duo Renee Montgomery and Tina Charles exploded in the second half.

"When you're looking around and your teammates are down, I want to be a spark," Montgomery said.

Montgomery, using her patented right-side lay-up drives Lynx fans adored when she played for them last season, scored 25 of her game-high 33 points in the second half and overtime. Charles helped the Sun (13-13) dominate the boards as she finished the game with 19 points and 20 rebounds. The Sun out-rebounded the Lynx 51-36 for the game.

The Sun appeared ready to steal another game on the Lynx's home floor after Renee Montgomery drained a three as time expired to tie the game at 95, taking advantage of three missed free throws out of four chances from the Lynx in the final minute of regulation.

"That was a tough shot, big props for her," said Lynx guard Monica Wright, who scored 21 points. Wright defended the Montgomery three that sent the game into overtime.

"For whatever reason, we take the form of the other team. If they play lackadaisical, we start to play lackadaisical," said Lynx forward Seimone Augustus, who also scored 21 points and recorded a season-high six assists.

In the overtime period, the Sun grabbed the lead a few times after not being in front throughout regulation, but the Lynx overpowered them by returning to their aggressive play that created the large first-half lead. Whalen made all six of her free throws in overtime and sank all 12 in the game. The Lynx went 10 for 10 altogether in overtime to seal the game.

"I focused on making all those free throws. We were put in pressure situations in practice. Tonight, I knew I was going to hit them," Whalen said.

Even Connecticut was impressed at the Lynx's perseverance after winning two close games in a row and holding on after blowing a 30-point lead.

"It's easy to get flustered and fall apart. To have a team make that big of a comeback and still keep your poise, that shows a lot of leadership," Montgomery said.

While the Lynx will attempt to adjust in order to prevent big leads from collapsing, their victory gave them a one-game lead over Los Angeles for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference, and a sense that they can pull through in close games after losing three nailbiters in a row.

"It shows that we're learning from our earlier mistakes. Hopefully, we'll turn the corner," Whalen said.

The win was also significant not just because Connecticut has lost five of their last six games, but it prevented them from gaining ground on the New York Liberty for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Lynx traded Kelsey Griffin to Connecticut for a 2011 first-round draft pick before the season started, which means they would earn a lottery spot should the Sun miss the playoffs.

"It's not a moral victory. We're too late in the season for those. That was a huge game to give away," said Connecticut head coach Mike Thibault.