Lynx capture 4th WNBA title in 7 years

WASHINGTON, Oct. 4 (Xinhua) -- The Minnesota Lynx defeated the Los Angeles Sparks 85-76 in Game 5 of the WNBA Finals to capture the team's fourth championship on Wednesday.

The victory served as revenge and redemption for the Lynx, who lost last year's Game 5 decider to the Sparks on a last-second shot on their home court.

The best-of-five series had seesawed back and forth, with the Sparks winning Game 1 on the road in Minneapolis before the Lynx evened it up and then the teams trading wins in Los Angeles in Games 3 and 4.

Sylvia Fowles had 17 points and broke her own WNBA Finals record by grabbing 20 rebounds for the Lynx. Maya Moore had 18 points and 10 rebounds while Lindsay Whalen had 17 points and eight assists.

"I think every time you do this, it gets a little more special because it gets a little harder," Whalen said. "And more meaningful because you know it's not easy. It's not something we try to take for granted ever."

The teams, which both earned byes into the semifinals due to having the top two regular -season records, advanced to the Finals with little difficulty, with the top-seeded Lynx sweeping the Washington Mystics and the Sparks doing the same to the Phoenix Mercury.

The Lynx became just the second franchise in WNBA history to win the title four times. Minnesota previously captured the WNBA title in 2011, 2013 and 2015. The only other four-time league champs are the Houston Comets, who won the first four WNBA titles from 1997 through 2000.