A pair of playoff teams will meet for the second time in the regular season when the Minnesota Lynx host the Indiana Fever on Sunday night. The game will be the second of a home-and-home between the two teams, with Minnesota having already downed the Fever on the road on Friday.
Looking at the odds on DraftKings Sportsbook, the Lynx are a 12-point home favorite with -800 odds on the Moneyline. Indiana has +550 odds on the Moneyline of getting the win as an underdog, while the total is set at 167 points. Let’s check out some best bets and game predictions for this Lynx-Fever contest.
Lynx vs. Fever prediction, pick
Sunday’s matchup will be the second time the Lynx and Fever have met in the regular season, but third time the two have played this season, as the they battled in the Commissioner’s Cup Championship as well. Though the Fever defeated Minnesota in the Championship, that game was back at the start of July, and these teams look a bit different now, with the Lynx taking the latest matchup between the two on Friday 95-90.
Minnesota has looked like the best team in the league this season, clinching a playoff spot on Aug. 12 while owning a 29-7 record, 5.5 games ahead of the second-place Dream. Although the Lynx hit a losing skid by their standards, dropping two straight, Minnesota bounced back Friday with their win over Indiana, led by Kayla McBride’s 29 points and Jessica Shepard’s triple-double.
Now, the Lynx will get reinforcements just as the playoffs draw closer, with MVP-favorite Napheesa Collier set to make her return to the lineup today against the Fever. Minnesota did an outstanding job with Collier missing from the lineup due to a sprained ankle, going 5-2 in the seven games she missed. The Lynx were able to rely on McBride and Courtney Williams in Collier’s absence, while other role players stepped up as well. However, Collier leads the league with 23.5 points on a game on 53.7% shooting, adding 7.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists as well, and her return to the lineup should be a welcome one.
The Fever’s injury luck, however, hasn’t been positive. Caitlin Clark continues to remain sidelined due to a groin injury, missing her 15th straight regular-season game and 25th game of the season. In fact, much of Indiana’s guard group is out, as Sydney Colson, Aari McDonald and Sophie Cunningham all suffered season-ending injuries while Odyssey Sims is a game-time decision.
In spite of all the Fever’s injuries, the team has managed to hold onto a playoff spot, remaining in sixth place in the WNBA standings with a 19-17 record. Indiana has gone 5-5 in its last 10, largely in part due to Kelsey Mitchell and Aliyah Boston, who are averaging 21.5 points and nine rebounds a game, respectively.
However, the Fever have also faced some lesser competition in that time, such as already-eliminated teams in Connecticut, Dallas and Chicago, and the Lynx are on a whole different tier. Although Indiana kept it close Friday night, the team also shot 65% from deep, which is hard to see happening again against a Minnesota team that usually allows teams to shoot 32.9% from the three-point arc. With Collier also back in the lineup, this Lynx team should be too much for a depleted Fever team, and Minnesota should be able to cover at home, where it is 11-8 ATS.
