WNBA: Two West-East showdowns on tap Wednesday

So far, it seems the Eastern Conference is stronger than the West. With one exception.

The Lynx are 3-0 against Eastern Conference teams, beating New York, Washington and Connecticut. All three wins were on the road.

The rest of the West? The other five teams have played the East only six times and are 0-6.

There are two West-East games on Wednesday, including one on ESPN2.

Los Angeles (6-1) plays ar Connecticut (6-1) in a matchup of two of the league's best teams. Both teams have lost once to the Lynx, otherwise they would be unbeaten. The TV schedule-makers picked a good game there. Tipoff is 7 p.m. (CDT).

In the other inter-conference showdown, struggling Seattle (1-6) plays the other East co-leader Chicago (6-1).

Here are the Lynx scores against the East:

May 30: Lynx 79, Washington 77

June 1: Lynx 85, Connecticut 72

Other West teams against the East:

May 25: Connecticut 83, San Antonio 79

May 26: Washington 64, Tulsa 61

May 31: Atlanta 81, Phoenix 65

June 8: Atlanta 60, San Antonio 57

Chicago 98, Tulsa 91, OT

Add it all up, and the East, with a 6-3 edge over the West, is 23-20 overall for a .535 winning percentage.

The West is 21-24, a .467 winning percentage.

Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve, after the team's first game last month, was asked if she was worried about the team being motivated.

She said no, not at all. "The motivation for this team is to take their place in history," she said. "It [repeat championships] haven't been done in 10 years. it has been only a couple times in our league that you have had back-to-back.

"Obviously the great Houston teams that won four in a row, which is absolutely amazing.But it was a different time in our league. And so, we want to take our place in history. So that is the motivation for these guys."

The Houston Comets won the WNBA's first four championships, from 1997 to 2000. Los Angeles was the WNBA champion in 2001 and 2002. Nobody has repeated since.

Whether the Lynx will is way too early to tell. But, as far as making team and WNBA history, the Lynx are doing pretty well:

* They have won 12 regular-season games in a row -- a franchise record -- starting after a home loss to New York on Sept. 4, 2011.

* They have won six regular-season games at home, five this season. The Lynx were 14-3 at Target Center a year ago.

LYNX TALK

Second-year Lynx forward Maya Moore, on the team finishing the 2011 season with six wins in the playoffs:

"Ending the season the way we did was definitely a great feeling. But I don't know if we are necessarily looking back at that last season for that. We are looking at it as momentum. But we are not looking at it as we don't have to work hard anymore. It's a new year. We are trying to start new runs. We are trying to do some new things with the same group."

Lynx center Taj McWilliams-Franklin after Seattle win without Seimone Augustus (strained right quadriceps): "It's disconcerting for the rest of the league when we don't have our best player -- for us the MVP of the league should be -- and we still win by almost 30. It says a lot, especially with the defense Seattle is known to play."

The Lynx also beat Tulsa 93-73 on the road Saturday without Augustus.