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A22 sports
Monday 4 SepteMber 2017

Lynx secure top seed as WNBA playoffs set

By DOUG FEINBERG been the surprise team this who it would face until the
AP Basketball Writer season, lost two of three late afternoon.
NEW YORK (AP) — The heading into the postsea- The Storm will visit the
WNBA playoffs are set — son. “To our players’ cred- Mercury in the first round
finally. Minnesota secured it, there was a real belief Wednesday while the Wings
the top spot in the post- in the locker room that play at Washington in the
season and Los Angeles we could overachieve,” other playoff game that
will be seeded No. 2. Those Connecticut coach Curt night. The WNBA changed
two teams, who met for the Miller said. “We had some its format last season tak-
WNBA Finals last season, special chemistry that we ing the top eight teams to
have byes again until the could be better than what the postseason instead of
semifinals. many predicted us finish- going with four from each
The Lynx had to beat Wash- ing. They never wavered conference. The league
ington on the last day of the after the start and the close also changed the format
regular season to secure losses that accumulated at so that the first two rounds
the top spot, as the Sparks the beginning of the year. are one game each. The
were a game behind them I can’t be more pleased. semifinals and champion-
and held the tiebreaker. It’s disappointing that we ship round are best of five.
Minnesota finished with the Minnesota Lynx’s Sylvia Fowles is fouled by Indiana Fever’s Nat- didn’t come up with an The semifinals will begin
alie Achonwa as she goes up for a shot during the first half of
league’s best record for a WNBA basketball game Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2017, in India- Eastern Conference cham- Sept. 12 in Minnesota and
the fifth time in seven years. napolis. pionship, but hats off to Los Angeles with the WNBA
“That was crucial getting Associated Press New York with 10 straight Finals starting Sept. 24.
the top seed,” Lynx center had already clinched byes winners of Wednesday’s wins at the finish to catch “It’s going to be good to
Sylvia Fowles told The As- to the second round before first-round games on Sun- us.”Seattle clinched a post- have some rest,” Fowles
sociated Press in a phone Sunday’s play. The Liberty day, Sept. 10. season berth on Friday, fi- said. “We had two of our
interview Sunday. “We un- earned the No. 3 seed by “You control what you can nalizing the eight teams in starters that have been out.
derstood we made it hard beating Dallas on Sunday control,” Liberty coach Bill the playoffs. The Storm and Lindsay Whalen’s still trying
for ourselves, but we came and matched a franchise Laimbeer said. “We’re just seventh-seed Dallas were to get her way back. That
in and got those last three record with a 10th straight trying to peak at the right the only teams who knew will be big to get her back
games.” win. Both New York and time heading into the play- their playoff position going and (having the time off)
New York and Connecticut Connecticut will host the offs.” The Sun, who have into Sunday. Neither knew will help with that.”q

Miguel Angel Lopez wins 15th Vuelta stage, Froome keeps lead

ALTO HOYA DE LA MORA, bali, increasing it to 1 min- onds. He also moved up southern Sierra Nevada thing at this Vuelta. crashes,
Spain (AP) — Colombian ute, 1 second. to sixth overall at 2:51 off mountains ended with al- attacks. I can expect ev-
rider Miguel Angel Lopez The result allowed Froome Froome’s pace. most 28 kilometers (17.3 erything (over the remain-
won the mountainous 15th to turn around the previ- Lopez, a 23-year-old rider miles) of continuous ascent. ing week).”
stage of the Spanish Vuelta ous days’ trend of Nibali for Astana, claimed his first Nibali also launched a late Froome, a four-time Tour
on Sunday, while Tour de pecking away at the British grand tour win on Wednes- attack to test Froome. But champion, has finished
France winner Chris Froome rider’s comfortable advan- day, when he won a simi- it didn’t pay off as Froome the Vuelta runner-up three
tacked a few seconds onto tage. larly tough mountain stage got help from Sky team- times.
his overall lead. Lopez attacked with Alber- finishing at the Calar Alto mates Mikel Nieve and Ilnur Zakarin moved into
A late surge by Froome to Contador near the start summit. Wout Poels to keep Nibali in third overall at 2:08 behind
over the final meters of the of the stage’s last climb. Lo- “We decided to ride with sight — and then reeled the Froome.
punishing ride over two pez then set off on his own Contador when he made a Italian back before beating Monday is the second rest
category one and a final to pass breakaway rider great attack, and I thought him to the finish line. day for the three-week
special-category ascent Adam Yates and power his I had good legs and it all “I just have a huge, huge race, which heads north on
allowed him to grow the way to the summit finish at went off well,” Lopez said. thank you for my team- Tuesday with an individual
gap over Vincenzo Nibali. Alto Hoya de la Mora. “There are many hard mates. There were a lot of time trial.
“It’s all small steps at this Lopez finished the 129.4-ki- stages to go. The Vuelta is big attacks today, but they The final week of the race
stage,” Froome said about lometer (80.4-mile) stage not over and we will go for- stayed with me and con- will stay in the north before
the six seconds he added starting in Alcala la Real in ward step by step.” trolled the speed,” Froome its finish in Madrid on Sept.
to his advantage over Ni- 3 hours, 34 minutes, 51 sec- The route drawn in the said. “We have seen every- 10.q