The Connecticut Sun defeated the Minnesota Lynx in two games during the regular season.

When the stakes were raised in Minnesota on Sunday, they defeated them again in a 73-70 thriller to take a 1-0 lead in the WNBA semifinal series. Alyssa Thomas fell one assist short of a triple-double as Connecticut’s defense flummoxed the regular season’s best 3-point shooting team.

The Sun struck the first blow late in the first quarter and then recovered from a Lynx surge in the third quarter to secure the win thanks to the strength of their defense.

After a few back-and-forth opening minutes, the Sun closed the first quarter on a 9-2 run to take a 21-14 lead into the second quarter. The Lynx closed the gap to 42-38 at halftime and rode a 24-15 lead in the third quarter to a 62-57 lead heading into the final stanza of the game. By then the match had already produced seven draws and ten lead changes.

And the sun wasn’t ready yet. They held the Lynx scoreless through the first 4:21 of the fourth quarter and regained the lead 65-64. From that point on, the match resumed as a close battle with a total of 13 lead changes before the Sun took the lead for good at 69-68. Connecticut’s defense continued to smother Minnesota’s offense down the stretch, holding the Lynx to eight points in the fourth quarter.

The game ended fittingly when Napheesa Collier missed a tying three-point attempt at the buzzer with DeWanna Bonner covering her on the left wing.

Four Sun players scored in double figures in a balanced attack led by Marina Mabrey. Mabrey scored 20 points, five rebounds and three assists while shooting 6 of 11 from 3-point range.

Thomas scored 17 points, 10 rebounds, nine assists and three steals on an 8-of-12 shooting effort from the floor. She closed the game with a catch-and-shoot jumper from the free throw line over the outstretched hands of Alanna Smith with 11.7 seconds left.

That bucket gave Minnesota one last chance to tie the game. The Lynx called a timeout and set up an inbound play on the front court. But they couldn’t get a good look at Connecticut’s swarming defense. Collier’s final three-point heave hit the backboard well short of the mark just before the final buzzer sounded.

The 3-point miss was Minnesota’s 15th on a 5-of-20 (25%) effort from long range. Bridget Carleton (3-of-6 from 3, 17 points) was the only Lynx player to hit more than one three-point attempt. Collier, Kayla McBride and Smith combined to shoot 1 of 11 from beyond the arc. Minnesota led the league in three-point shooting during the regular season while connecting at a 38% clip.

Collier led the Lynx with 19 points, nine rebounds, four assists, two steals and one block on the same day she was named the WNBA’s Defensive Player of the Year. The Lynx were strong on defense while holding the Sun to 41.3% shooting from the field. But Connecticut found success from long range where Minnesota did not, shooting 9-of-22 (40.9%) from beyond the arc led by Mabrey’s six 3s.

The Lynx and Sun resume the best-of-five series on Tuesday with Game 2 in Minnesota. The winner of the series will advance to face the winner between the Las Vegas Aces and New York Liberty in the WNBA Finals.