It wasn’t difficult to believe a game like this was coming for Maya Moore. Sure, she had nine 30-point games already this season, but there still was no signature effort — that one game in which she seemed unstoppable.

That game happened Tuesday night for the Minnesota Lynx all-star.

Moore scored 23 points in the first half and matched her season high of 38 after a 15-point third quarter. She finished with a franchise-record 48, breaking Katie Smith’s mark by two points, as the Lynx held off the Atlanta Dream 112-108 in double overtime at Target Center.

Moore’s total was the second-highest in WNBA history, trailing only the 51 points scored last season by Riquna Williams of Tulsa. Moore’s final point, on a free throw with two seconds left in double overtime, sent her past the 47-point totals posted by Diana Taurasi in 2006 and Lauren Jackson in 2007.

Moore finished 16 for 30 from the floor and 7 for 9 on three-point attempts. With 10 games of 30 points or more this season, she tied the league record held by Taurasi.

“We needed every single one of them,” Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve said. Reeve said Moore’s achievement was even more impressive considering she did it without Minnesota’s second-leading scorer, Seimone Augustus, in the lineup to draw attention from the Atlanta defense. Augustus missed her ninth straight game with left knee bursitis but is expected to return on Friday.

For Moore, her performance was all about staying within the offensive scheme and not overthinking things.

“The coaching staff drew up some sets that put us in great positions to score. The post players did a good job screening for me away from the ball, and I was just trying to be aggressive, shoot with confidence and attack,” Moore said.

As is custom for Moore after she has a big game, she insisted that her only concern was getting the win, and she’ll do whatever it takes for that to happen.

Even in the win against the Eastern Conference’s best team, Moore and Reeve acknowledged that there is plenty to improve upon heading into the Lynx’s final 10 games of the season. A 14-point fourth quarter lead was relinquished and plenty of opportunities were squandered late in the game and in overtime, things they said are unacceptable.

“We’re still hungry; I’m still hungry to get better. This wasn’t a perfect game for us; we want to keep rising,” Moore said.

“All of a sudden our offense went south. We had some really bad turnovers, hard shots and they started making everything scoring on every possession and all of a sudden we are in OT,” Reeve said, specifically noting Minnesota’s 23 turnovers as something “you can’t do.”

With all the areas that need to be patched up before playoff time, Reeve was in good spirits knowing that Moore is on her side.

“For me, it’s hands down who the MVP is in this league.” Reeve said. “There’s no one close. It’s crazy how good she’s been.”

Brunson returns

Lynx forward Rebekkah Brunson played for the first time this season after undergoing knee surgery in May. She showed no signs of rust, snaring 12 rebounds and scoring 17 points in 35 minutes.

“(Playing 35 minutes) wasn’t the plan,” Brunson said with a laugh. “I wasn’t going to hold back. The reason I was out there was because everybody was confident I was ready, and I wanted to play that way.”

Lindsay Whalen added 26 points for the Lynx. Sancho Lyttle had 26 points and 12 rebounds for Atlanta.

Cooper absent

Dream coach and former Los Angeles Lakers star Michael Cooper was not in attendance Tuesday, as it was announced Monday that he has early stages of tongue cancer. He is expected to miss two weeks.

Assistant coach Karleen Thompson acted as head coach in Cooper’s absence.