The Indiana Fever, led by Caitlin Clark, pulled off a statement win against the top-seeded Minnesota Lynx. However, the Lynx were without their top scorer and playmaker, Olivia Miles, who was scratched from the roster set to play due to injury concerns. Clark showcased her sportsmanship and competitive spirit as she shared a message for the Rookie of the Year candidate, per a video on YouTube by the Indiana Fever.
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“We got off to a great start, and we were able to find a way to close it and get a big win. One more, I hope Liv (Olivia Miles) plays, and I think it will be a fun one,” said Clark.
The Lynx announced the downgrade in Miles status shortly after head Coach Cheryl Reeve’s pre-game press conference. Miles was initially listed as questionable, but her status was later marked as “Out,” just 90 minutes before the game due to a calf injury on Tuesday.
This loss confronts the Minnesota team with an uneasy truth: that Olivia Miles’ absence has a far bigger impact than any other player on the Lynx squad, including last year’s MVP runner-up Napheesa Collier. Miles currently leads the Minnesota team in points and assists per game, averaging 19.8 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 6.0 assists per game. Even opponent head coach Stephanie White admitted the difference not having Miles on the court had on the Lynx.
“It changes a lot, certainly, because she’s the head of the snake. It changes coverage. It changes who their primary ball handler is. Probably the actions that they run. So, we’ve got to just be prepared for that. On either end of the floor, though, it cannot change our mentality. It cannot change the sense of urgency that we’re talking about playing with on both ends of the floor.”
Olivia Miles’ absence saw the game’s pendulum swing both ways.
The Fever steamrolled the first quarter of the game, scoring 31 points, while the Lynx could only put up 16. Indiana showed no signs of slowing down in the second quarter and again scored 26 points in the second quarter, while the Lynx could only muster up 18, ending the half with a 23-point lead in favor of the Fever.
Coach Cheryl Reeve realized the gravity of the situation, as the game looked like turning into a rout. Reeve then benched all the starters, with Napheesa Collier, Courtney Williams, Kayla McBride, and Natasha Howard not playing a single minute in the second half, and Maya Caldwell only playing for 12:07.
The gamble seemed to have worked. The Lynx scored 30 points in the third quarter, and the comeback was on. However, the Fever’s lead was quite insurmountable at this point, and the Fever held on for the 96-77 win.
Caitlin Clark scored the game high of 27 points, shooting 9-of-18 from the field, while adding nine assists and seven rebounds.
It was a night of inefficient shooting for the Lynx, as Chloe Bibby emerged as the top scorer for the team, with 15 points. Napheesa Collier could only muster nine points in 13 minutes of playing time.
The loss puts a blemish on Lynx’s fine record this season. They have stayed at the top of the table for the majority of the season. The Lynx, with a 32-11 record, are now just half a game ahead of the Golden State Valkyries, who are 31-11 but have two games still left to play.
Even if the Valkyries win both their games, the Lynx will finish as the top seed due to their superior head-to-head record against the Valkyries this season.
But this win serves as a reminder that the Fever are a dangerous team to face in the playoffs, especially when Caitlin Clark is firing on all cylinders. But while the Fever did win this exchange, Clark was keenly aware of the pressure the Minnesota bench put on her team, as she expressed after the game.
“Yeah, I thought our third quarter was a little bit sloppy, and they went zone, and I think it stopped our flow a little bit, and then we were fouling and not able to play in transition, but you’ve got to give their bench credit; they came in, and they fought, and I thought it was a good game for us,” she said.
Clark has been in fine form this season and is averaging 22.7 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 8.4 assists per game this season. Clark’s 25 points against the Washington Mystics on September 20 took her tally to 862 points for the 2026 WNBA season. This meant that Clark now has the record for most points scored by a point guard in a season, surpassing Diana Taurasi’s 860 points.
Indiana will hope to utilize Caitlin Clark’s fine form to bring their first title since 2012. The Lynx, in turn, will want to have Miles back in shape for the next game against the Fever and hope to finish the regular season on a high.