For the second night in a row, the Lynx battled one of the more talented teams in the league. And for the second night in a row, they came up short as Detroit defeated Minnesota 78-69 in the Shock's home opener.

All five of the Shock's starters scored in double figures, led by Cheryl Ford's 17 points and 14 rebounds. Seimone Augustus led the way for the Lynx with 15 points, but it took some time to adjust to the defense of Deanna Nolan. "Early on, I don't think I was as aggressive as I should have been. She made every shot difficult."

Just like their game with Sun the night before, the Lynx hung with the Shock before fading late in the fourth quarter. After the Lynx pulled within four points with under five minutes left, the Shock went on a 10-2 run to clinch the win.

The Shock dominated the points in the paint and fast break points. They also got to foul line eight more times than the Lynx and got both Nicole Ohlde and Vanessa Hayden in foul trouble. Whether or not the tape of the Shock-Fever game sent by Bill Laimbeer to the league office played a part remains to be seen.