The Minnesota Lynx knew they'd have to rely heavily on Seimone Augustus as they tried to bounce back from a five-game losing streak earlier this month. With Augustus sidelined by a toe injury in their last game, the Lynx didn't have that luxury.
After having her streak of 82 consecutive starts snapped over the weekend, Augustus hopes to return as the Lynx host the Chicago Sky on Tuesday night.
Minnesota (8-7) dropped five straight from June 10-21, falling back to .500 after opening the season with a franchise-best 6-1 start.
Augustus was helping the Lynx rebound, leading the team in scoring in back-to-back wins over New York and Sacramento last Tuesday and Thursday, respectively. But the third-year guard out of LSU sprained the big toe on her right foot late in Thursday's victory, and couldn't play in Minnesota's 73-65 road loss to San Antonio on Saturday night.
Without the league's fourth-leading scorer in the lineup for the first time since she was drafted first overall in 2006, the Lynx shot 36.6 percent from the field and went 3-for-17 from 3-point range.
"We couldn't throw the ball into the basket," Lynx coach Don Zierden said. "Maybe our young players were trying to press a little bit without Seimone."
Rookie guard Candice Wiggins, who made her first career start in Augustus' place, scored 15 points but went 6-for-18 from the field, including 1-for-6 from behind the arc.
"The shots just didn't fall for me," Wiggins said. "They were shots I love to take. That's how it was."
Augustus, who has led the Lynx in scoring in six of their eight wins, will likely be a game-time decision Tuesday.
The Sky (4-9) hope Augustus needs some additional time to recover as they go for their second consecutive win following a five-game losing streak. Chicago snapped its skid with a 76-59 victory over Detroit on Saturday night. Candice Dupree had 18 points and eight rebounds, and three other Chicago starters reached double figures in scoring.
"We have a good team. We can win a lot more games than our record shows," said Sky coach Steven Key, whose club is opening a three-game road trip. "They did a great job of rebounding and communicating on defense.
"I do believe they are realizing that we are a good team and that they can win a lot more games than our record shows."
Chicago gave up 19 points to Augustus in a 75-69 home loss to Minnesota on May 29, ending the Sky's three-game win streak in the series.