PHOENIX – Kayla McBride found a two-game trip to the desert to her liking. And her teammates didn't seem to mind, either.
McBride made her first seven shot attempts and scored 21 of her 24 points in the first half as the Lynx beat the Phoenix Mercury for the second time in four days, 99-68 Saturday night for their fourth consecutive victory.
"Kayla is such a competitor," coach Cheryl Reeve said. "I think the up-and-down nature of her season so far has bothered her. But she shows up every day, working, working, working."
It wasn't just McBride's offense that pleased Reeve. "Her defense on [Diana] Taurasi was really, really good," Reeve said. "As much as everyone likes seeing the ball going into the hole, I thought her defensive effort was incredibly valuable to our team."
The Lynx, who shot 55.1% from the floor compared to 32.8% for the Mercury, were one point away from tying the franchise record for largest margin of victory on the road. They won 110-78 at Atlanta on June 10, 2016.
In Wednesday's 82-76 victory at Phoenix, McBride scored a season-high 26 points, including 11 in a critical third quarter. This time, she scored 14 points in the second quarter, when the Lynx made five of their seven three-point attempts and outscored the Mercury 37-23 — tying the franchise record for points in a quarter.
McBride was 8-for-9 from the floor, 3-for-4 from three-point range and 2-for-2 from the free-throw line in the first half. She scored only three points in the second half, but they came on a three-pointer in the third quarter that gave the Lynx a 32-point lead at 77-49, paving the way for a fairly relaxing fourth quarter for Reeve.
"Just keep grinding," McBride said. "Nights like these, you understand why you have to go through the process and why you have to go through the journey.
