Napheesa Collier and Olivia Miles Lead Lynx to Victory

Napheesa Collier powered the Minnesota Lynx to the brink of the No. 1 seed, Olivia Miles rewrote the record book, and the Connecticut Sun said goodbye to a franchise era — all in one charged afternoon.

Collier, Miles push Lynx to the doorstep

Collier looked every bit the franchise anchor, dropping 23 points as Minnesota handled Connecticut 101-89 on Sunday. The win moves the Lynx to 32-10 and leaves them one step — one more victory or a Golden State loss — from locking up home-court advantage throughout the WNBA playoffs.

They’ve got a home-and-home with Indiana to finish the regular season. One result is all they need.

If Collier set the tone, Miles supplied the jolt of history. The rookie guard poured in 21 points and, with a free throw at the 9:31 mark of the second quarter, climbed past Caitlin Clark for the most points by a first-year player in WNBA history. That shot gave Miles 770 for the season, nudging her past Clark’s 769-point mark set with Indiana in 2024.

Minnesota’s season has leaned heavily on Miles’ fearlessness. On a night that honored the past, she firmly stamped herself as part of the league’s future.

Fast start snaps skid

The Lynx came in on a three-game slide. They played like a team tired of talking about it.

Collier scored the game’s first four points, and Minnesota ripped out to an 11-2 lead in the opening 3:30. Courtney Williams, back on familiar floorboards after five seasons starring for the Sun, hit early and often, chipping in five points during that initial burst.

By the end of the first quarter, the damage was done. Minnesota led 27-12, Collier already on 10 points and the Sun scrambling to stay in touch.

The gap ballooned to 45-26 late in the second after a Collier layup, the Lynx threatening to turn the afternoon into a rout. Only then did Connecticut finally punch back, stringing together a 15-4 run to slice the deficit to single digits.

Just as the Sun crowd stirred, Collier quieted it. Her three-point play with 25.2 seconds left in the half shoved the margin back into double figures and reasserted Minnesota’s control.

Sun live from deep but can’t close the gap

Connecticut refused to fold. Their season has been riddled with injuries, and Sunday brought another blow when Saniya Rivers went down in the first quarter and did not return. Still, the Sun kept swinging from beyond the arc.

They drilled 12 of their first 19 three-point attempts, the only reason the score stayed respectable as Minnesota kept finding answers. Early in the fourth quarter, that hot shooting dragged the deficit down to just seven and gave the game a flicker of intrigue.

The Lynx never let it become more than that.

Minnesota tightened up defensively, traded scores, and leaned on their stars to keep the Sun at arm’s length. Connecticut finished a blistering 15-for-28 from deep, but without stops or a consistent interior threat, the comeback never fully materialized.

The loss drops the Sun to 10-32 and extends their skid to five straight.

A farewell framed by history

All of it played out against a backdrop of nostalgia and transition.

Before tipoff, the Sun honored former head coach Mike Thibault in what was the franchise’s second-to-last home game in Connecticut before relocating to Houston next season. Thibault guided the team from its birth in 2003 through 2012, building the identity that carried the club through its early years.

The tribute had a neat symmetry. On the opposite bench, his son Eric Thibault served as an assistant for Minnesota, sharing the sideline with Lindsay Whalen, who reached the WNBA Finals in 2004 under Mike’s leadership.

Around the arena, familiar faces dotted the stands and the floor: Tina Charles, Bria Hartley, Taj McWilliams-Franklin, Nicki Collen and others who helped shape the Sun’s history returned to pay their respects. It felt less like a routine regular-season game and more like a reunion wrapped inside a relocation countdown.

What they saw was a franchise in flux, battling through another defeat, and a contender on the other side accelerating toward the postseason.

What’s next

The schedule offers no time for reflection.

Minnesota heads to Indiana on Tuesday, chasing the single result that will officially run the road to the title through their building.

Connecticut travels to face the Mystics the same night, trying to halt a losing streak and squeeze some final pride out of a season — and a home city — that’s almost out of time.