Maya Moore scored 20 points and Natasha Howard added 17 to help the defending WNBA champion Minnesota Lynx beat the Phoenix Mercury 82-67 Sunday, completing a three-game sweep of the semifinal series.
The top-seeded Lynx, who also eliminated the Mercury in the penultimate round a year ago, await the winner of Los Angeles-Chicago in their return trip to the WNBA finals.
Diana Taurasi had 12 points, after averaging 26.5 in her first four playoff games this year, as the eighth-seeded Mercury again had trouble with turnovers (15) and shot just 41 percent from the field. Taurasi was held to just one point in the second half, missing her three attempts from the field, all from 3-point range.
Howard had six points during a key third quarter run that saw the Lynx pull away.
