The postseason version of the Drive for Five is off to a roaring start for the Minnesota Lynx.
Aiming to win the franchise’s fifth WNBA championship and its first since 2017, the Lynx began the postseason with a 101-72 romp over Golden State on Sunday at Target Center in the first game of the best-of-three first-round series.
Minnesota is the top seed, Golden State the eight, and the Lynx have won all five meetings this season by an average of 15.2 points.
Still, Napheesa Collier, who led five Lynx players in double figures with 20 points and six rebounds, said her squad will not be complacent for Wednesday’s Game 2.
“No one on this team thinks it’s going to be an easy game by any means. We know it’s going to be a fight. They all work really, really hard. That’s been a staple of their team this entire season. … We need to make sure we come with our A game, especially on defense.”
Settling in defensively was the key in Game 1 and a hallmark of this year’s Lynx squad that finished with the WNBA’s best defensive rating.
Outscoring Golden State by a combined 28 points in the middle two quarters and 36 through the final three didn’t hurt. And paint domination to the tune of 44-18 was pretty good, too.
Minnesota was nearly flawless in the second quarter in limiting the Valkyries to 12 points on 29.4% shooting, including 1 for 7 from deep, and taking a 47-40 lead into intermission.
It was a stark difference from the first quarter, when Golden State shot 50% in the frame, including five makes from outside the arc, for an early double-digit lead that fell to 28-21 by quarter’s end.
The Valkyries finished at 33.9%, nearly 18% worse than the Lynx, and made just four 3-pointers in the final three quarters.
Minnesota waking up from its early slumber coincided with Natisha Hiedeman entering the game with 3:42 to play in the first quarter.
A strong candidate for the league’s Sixth Player of the Year award, Hiedeman again provided a spark that propelled Minnesota to outscoring Golden State 38-22 in the rest of the first half. She finished a team-best plus-32, the second-highest mark in Lynx playoff history.
“She changed the game today,” said coach Cheryl Reeve.
Hiedeman is averaging 18.5 points and 4.3 assists in her past six games.
Said Kayla McBride: “She’s on a heater. … Throughout the season we’ve continued to see her evolve. And now when we need the most she’s showing up and showing out, having a lot of fun and playing with a lot of confidence in that second group.”
McBride netted 17 points before joining Collier on the bench for the fourth quarter.
Center Alanna Smith finished at plus-31 with nine points, six rebounds and four steals.
“I think she’s the defensive player of the year the way she’s able to guard post players, guards. She didn’t have any blocks today, but she does blocks almost every game,” Collier said. “… She is the anchor. We rely on her so heavily on that end of the floor, especially.”
Minnesota reserves outscored the Valkyries non-starters 42-17, led by 16 points from Hiedeman. Jessica Shepard continued to be a handful down low with 12 points and team-high eight rebounds in just 17 minutes.
“Our team is deep. It’s about we,” Courtney Williams said in a postgame in-arena interview. She finished with 11 points.
The Valkyries scored the first basket of the second half, but the Lynx countered with a Collier fadeaway and a 3-pointer from Smith. Williams then made a steal in the defensive end, scored on a fast-break layup and added the free throw to make it 55-42 and reinvigorate the boisterous 8,821 towel-waving fans that filled Target Center’s lower bowl.
DiJonai Carrington, in her first game back after missing four with a shoulder injury, and Williams had triples in the final 69 seconds of the third quarter to make it 79-58.
“You get frustrated with the things we didn’t execute on, but it’s a series for a reason. It’s 1-0, they were supposed to win at home. They’re the one seed, and it’s a home game. So they did what they’re supposed to do. Now, it’s our turn to do that at home,” said Veronica Burton, who tied with a team-high 14 points for Golden State on 3-of-13 shooting. She had seven of Golden State’s 16 turnovers.
Jessica Shepard #15 of the Minnesota Lynx defends the ball against Iliana Rupert #12 of the Golden State Valkyries and Kate Martin #20 during the fourth quarter in game one of the first round of the WNBA Playoffs at Target Center on Sept. 14, 2025 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Matt Krohn/Getty Images)
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