The Minnesota Lynx have a core group of players participating in their fifth WNBA Finals in the last six seasons. The Los Angeles Sparks only have one player who has made it this far before, and she is a seldom-used reserve.

When it came to poise, consistency and playmaking in Game 1, however, the Sparks looked like the battle-tested group. And now the Lynx are left to lean on their experience to dig out of another hole.

The defending champion Lynx turned the ball over 16 times and looked lost defensively against the Sparks’ pick-and-roll in the 78-76 loss on Sunday and got back to work on Monday knowing that if they don’t clean things up, their pursuit of a record-tying fourth title will swirl down the drain. 

“If you don’t handle a pick-and-roll any better than what we did, we looked like a high school team that was going against it for the first time,” coach Cheryl Reeve said on Monday. “That was disappointing. And throwing it right to them.”

The Lynx committed 11 of their 16 turnovers in the first half and had two more in the final three minutes of the game, and the Sparks took advantage. They scored 18 points off of Minnesota’s turnovers while only allowing four points off of their own 12 miscues. It was a clean, calm performance for a group that includes 12th-year pro Alana Beard and ninth-year star Candace Parker, both of whom have finally made it to the league’s biggest stage.

“I was happy with how poised and focused we were,” Sparks coach Brian Agler said. “We only have one player that has even been in this situation before. But we do have veteran players. They look at this as this is their moment to get this opportunity. … Candace and Alana, they have played long careers and they don’t get this (every year). So they know how to cherish this moment.”