Maya Moore scores 32 points, Lynx top Shock 79-72

TULSA, Okla. (AP) Maya Moore scored 32 points and the Minnesota Lynx beat the Tulsa Shock 79-72 on Sunday in a showdown between the top two teams in the Western Conference.

Minnesota (12-3) won its fourth straight and sent Tulsa (10-7) to its third loss in a row.

It was Moore's seventh straight game with 20-plus points, matching her own franchise record. She added 10 rebounds and five assists. Asjha Jones scored 16 points, and Rebekkah Brunson had 12 points and 13 rebounds.

Riquna Williams led Tulsa with 19 points, and Plenette Pierson had 15.

Tulsa led the entire first half and was up by seven at the break, but Minnesota scored the first 11 points of the second half to take a lead for good.

The Lynx were without Seimone Augustus, a WNBA All-Star averaging 15.4 points, and Monica Wright. They had knee surgery this week and are out indefinitely.

Tulsa opened a 15-4 lead midway through the first quarter and maintained the lead through the entire first half as Minnesota struggled to get going. Jones' lay-in with 1:31 trimmed the Lynx's deficit to two, but the Shock responded by scoring the last five points of the half - including a 3-point play by Odyssey Sims - to hold a 34-27 lead at the break.

Minnesota heated up after intermission, scoring the first 11 points of the third quarter, with Moore hitting a 3-pointer, a lay-in and a 12-foot jumper, to go up 38-34. The Lynx stretched the advantage to 11 after a 7-2 spurt at the start of the fourth, with Moore pouring in another 3-pointer and mid-range jumper in the sequence. Moore was 13 of 21 from the floor, including 4 of 6 from beyond the arc.

The Shock used an eight-point run from Williams - on a pair of free throws then a pair of 3-pointers - to close the gap to four with 1:29 left. But Minnesota made six consecutive free throws down the stretch, two each from Moore, Anna Cruz and Jones, to seal the win.

Moore went just 1 for 6 from the floor in the first half, but took over in the second, going 12 for 15 after the break. She has scored over 30 points in her last four games against the Shock and her 30 points in the second half set a club record for points in a half.

Minnesota has beaten Tulsa in 21 of its last 23 meetings and has won 11 in a row on Tulsa's home court. The teams split their previous two games this season.

Tulsa continues to play without two of its top players. Skylar Diggins is out for the season with an ACL injury and Glory Johnson is sitting out the season due to her pregnancy.