Maya Moore Went Off And The Lynx Won Game 2 Of The WNBA Finals

The WNBA Finals are now tied at 1-1, following a 19-point win by the Minnesota Lynx over the Los Angeles Sparks.

The defending WNBA champions were down 0-1 in the series after a buzzer-beater gave the Sparks the win in Game 1.

Lynx forward Maya Moore did most of the damage in Game 2, finishing with 21 points, 12 rebounds, and three assists.

Current league MVP Nneka Ogwumike struggled for the Sparks, putting up a team-leading 14 points with 12 rebounds and two assists. Ogwumike had only one layup in the fourth quarter after the Sparks had brought the game within eight points after the third.

Moore said she struggled to sleep after the Game 1 loss to the Sparks, crediting the energy of her teammates for the team’s continued morale.

The WNBA has spent the last couple days doing a victory lap over its Game 1 ratings. ESPN said it was “the most-watched WNBA Finals Game 1 since 1998 across ABC, ESPN and ESPN2,” using Nielsen stats. Somewhat buried in the release, though, is that Los Angeles had the lowest viewership of the top five markets. Minnesota had far and away the highest ratings, followed by women’s college hoops hubs Hartford-New Haven, Louisville, and Charlotte.

Still, Game 1 competed directly with NFL Sunday, playoff baseball, and, indirectly, the second presidential debate. It will be interesting to see the Game 2 ratings. A potentially decisive Game 4 could fall on another NFL/MLB Sunday.

The series heads to Los Angeles for Game 3 Friday at 9 p.m. ET.