Something’s gotta give as the Minnesota Lynx visit the Phoenix Mercury, with each team looking for their first win. Part of the issue in the Minnesota Lynx standings is they have lost their two games to teams who were thought of as fringe playoff teams based on WNBA odds before the season. The Mercury has been in a similar situation, granted they have a little more emotion tied to their two losses.
Here is a breakdown of each team, the Lynx vs Mercury odds, and predictions.
Minnesota Lynx vs. Phoenix Mercury Odds
Moneyline
Lynx vs Mercury odds show the hosts are favored at -145 on the moneyline. The Lynx are +125 on the moneyline.
Spread
Phoenix Mercury hold an advantage of -2.5 on the spread.
Over/Under
The over/under is 159.5 points, with -110 odds on either side of the spread. The Lynx’s implied points total is 78.5 points, while the Mercury’s implied points total is 81 points, with -115 odds on either side of those spreads.
Minnesota Lynx vs. Phoenix Mercury Information
Minnesota Lynx vs Phoenix Mercury
Location of the game: Footprint Center, Phoenix, AZ
Date & Time: Thursday, May 25, 2023, 10:00 p.m. ET
How to watch: Prime Video, AZ Family 3TV, AZ Family Sports Network 44, Bally Sports North
Minnesota Lynx vs. Phoenix Mercury Betting Preview
Minnesota Lynx
The Lynx have been subpar on both ends of the floor. They rank ninth in scoring 71.5 points per game, seventh in making 39.2% of field goal attempts and 80.6% of free throws, and ninth with making 27.3% of 3-point shots.
On defense, the Lynx are eighth in allowing 80.0 points per game, 11th with opponents converting 42.6% of field goal attempts, and ninth in 34.0% on 3-point shots. While the Lynx have a young team, there are too many veterans – although no stars – to be allowing those kinds of numbers.
Forward Natalie Achonwa remains out indefinitely due to personal reasons. But she has played as a reserve and not been a major factor for the Lynx in her 43 career games over the last two seasons.
Phoenix Mercury
Brittney Griner is Back in Action, But Phoenix Mercury Still Struggling
The aforementioned emotion comes with the return of Brittney Griner to the lineup, first in a road contest which resulted in a 94-71 loss to the Los Angeles Sparks, and then her home return, a 75-69 loss to the Chicago Sky.
Griner was detained in Russia in February 2022 and not released till December after a prisoner swap which was big WNBA news. She vowed to never play overseas – which is customary for WNBA players to provide greater income – after that experience. So far, Griner looks like the Most Valuable Player she once was.
She is averaging 22.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 4.0 blocks per game. Though her longtime teammate, Diana Taurasi, is averaging 15.5 points and 5.5 assists, she is only shooting 28.1% from the field and 16.7% on 3-pointers to go with 12 total turnovers.
Mercury Look to Add Wins Despite Defensive Struggles
As a team, the Mercury are 10th in scoring 70.0 points per game, yet fifth in making 40.9% of field goal attempts and 30.6% of 3-point shots. They are eighth at making 79.5% of free throws and last with 31.5 rebounds per game.
Defensively they are 11th in allowing 84.5 points per game and 40.5% on 3-pointers. They are sixth with allowing 39.9% on all field goal attempts. They hope to turn that around to add wins to the Phoenix Mercury schedule.
Injuries
The team is without backup center Meg Gustafson (foot) and guards Skylar Diggins-Smith (personal) and Shey Peddy (knee).
Minnesota Lynx vs. Phoenix Mercury Betting Picks
The Lynx have won six straight in the series, but 69% of public bets are on the Mercury to win and cover. We tend to agree, as there is too much talent in Phoenix to not win and cover Lynx vs Mercury odds. With the emotional games behind them, Griner and the Mercury should be able to exploit that size matchup.
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