Tiffany Mitchell of the Minnesota Lynx made the steal that all but sealed the Los Angeles Sparks’ doom Tuesday night at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. She had a career-high-tying and game-high five steals on the night, including two pick-6s over the course of an 11-3 first-quarter Lynx run that gave her team a one-point and made it competitive for the rest of the contest.
The big-time steal came with 15 seconds remaining and the Lynx leading 64-61. Napheesa Collier then made 1-of-2 free throws to make it a two-possession game with eight ticks to go. Nneka Ogwumike missed a three that would have cut it to one at five seconds and Minnesota held on for the 67-61 win.
Collier finished with 26 points, 14 rebounds and three steals to continue her phenomenal season. She got the better of her duel with N. Ogwumike (20 points, nine boards). Bridget Carleton added 14 points and six rebounds to the winning cause and hit four key second-half threes. Mitchell was good for eight points, four boards and two assists in addition to her five swipes.
Collier was cashing in from just behind the free throw line, with field goals from there coming at 3:28 remaining and 1:26 remaining to give the Lynx (4-8) leads of 62-59 and 64-61, respectively. The first was a bit lucky, as it banked in,…