dijohnai-carrington-lynx-getty-images.jpg
Getty Images

The New York Liberty (21-12) travel to play the Minnesota Lynx (27-5) in a cross-conference WNBA tilt on Saturday. Minnesota has secured five straight wins, including an 83-71 victory over the Liberty on Aug. 10. Meanwhile, New York has lost two of its past three games. Napheesa Collier (ankle) is doubtful for Minnesota. Isabelle Harrison (concussion protocol), Nyara Sabally (knee) and Breanna Stewart (knee) are all out for New York. 

Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. ET at Target Center on CBS and Paramount+. The Lynx are favored by 1.5 points, and the over/under is 166 in the latest Liberty vs. Lynx odds from DraftKings Sportsbook. SportsLine women's college basketball experts Calvin Wetzel and Aaron Barzilai have made their Liberty vs. Lynx picks, and they like Minnesota to cover the spread. Be sure to watch this game on CBS and Paramount+, where new users can get a free one-week trial. Sign up here.

Wetzel and Barzilai went 202-111-2 (+57.9 units) during the 2024 WNBA season and posted a 147-88-1 (+47.1 units) during the 2024-25 NCAA season. Anyone following those sports betting picks at sportsbooks and on betting apps could have seen huge returns. New users can also target the DraftKings promo code, which offers $200 in bonus bets instantly plus over $200 off NFL Sunday Ticket:

Best WNBA picks for Liberty vs. Lynx (odds subject to change):

  • Minnesota Lynx -1.5 (-112)
  • DiJonai Carrington under 10.5 points (+100) 

Minnesota Lynx -1.5 (-112)

The Minnesota Lynx enter this game with a WNBA-best 27-5 record this season. Even though Collier is still out with an ankle injury, Minnesota has won five straight games with her on the sideline. In the last 10 games, Kayla McBride is averaging 16.2 points and four assists. Wetzel also noted that sportsbooks have moved lines too much in one direction when a star is out, and they did it again with Minnesota.

"One of my favorite edges this season has been betting on teams with a star player out, as sportsbooks adjust the line too far to account for the absence. That has been the case for Minnesota, who has now covered in two of their three games since Napheesa Collier went down," Wetzel said. "That includes a 12-point road win at New York their last time out, and now they get to host the Liberty, who themselves are missing Breanna Stewart among others and are playing without a deep bench available. Apart from that, Minnesota hasn't played since that last matchup, giving them nearly a week of rest, while New York has played twice in two different cities since then."

Watch Liberty vs. Lynx on CBS or stream on Paramount+. New Paramount+ users can sign up here and get a free one-week trial. New users can also check out the latest FanDuel promo code and get $300 in bonus bets instantly at Fanduel if your $5 bet wins. 

DiJonai Carrington Under 10.5 total points (+100)

DiJonai Carrington has been in Minnesota since the beginning of the month and has been shooting the ball at a high rate since landing with the Lynx. Wetzel believes it'll be hard for her to keep shooting the ball at that clip. 

"I took this bet in my article for the last Lynx game, and it didn't hit as Carrington finished with 15. However, she did so on 10 field goal attempts, shooting 4-for-7 inside the arc and 2-for-3 from deep. The entire logic of that play was shooting regression – Carrington's efficiency since getting traded to Minnesota has been off the charts – and even though she didn't regress in that game, let's try again," Wetzel said. 

"Carrington has played 23 games this year, and three of her top four true shooting percentages have come in her three games with the Lynx. While having more talent around her will certainly help the shooting percentages, not even the best players in the league can sustain the rate at which Carrington has been hitting shots." 

Bet this line at bet365, where new users can check out the latest bet365 bonus code to get $150 in bonus bets after placing a $5 bet:

Want more picks this weekend?

Now. you've seen the best WNBA picks for Liberty vs. Lynx. Visit SportsLine to see which expert picks you need to back on Saturday.