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Lynx Coach Cheryl Reeve Gets Honest About Loss to Aces

Minnesota Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve got real about her team's tough loss to the Las Vegas Aces on Thursday

Will Despart

Aug 28, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve yells at referee Jenna Reneau in the fourth quarter of the game with the Seattle Storm at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images
Aug 28, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve yells at referee Jenna Reneau in the fourth quarter of the game with the Seattle Storm at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images / Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images

The Minnesota Lynx put together an impressive offensive performance in Thursday's game against the Las Vegas Aces, but they allowed a season-high 97 points defensively on their way to a fourth loss in their last eight games.

Given the fact that the Lynx lost just five of their first 33 games leading up to this stretch, there's growing cause for concern that the team is hitting a rut at the worst possible time. On the other hand, the Lynx have already clinched the No. 1 seed in the playoffs and spent part of this rough stretch without star forward Napheesa Collier, who missed most of August with a significant ankle sprain.

Regardless, Thursday was significant for both the Lynx and the WNBA, and not in the way anyone in Minnesota would have hoped. Aces star A'ja Wilson tallied 31 points on an efficient 80% from the field while holding Collier to just 12 total points, thus emerging as a shocking -120 favorite to win the MVP award when betting markets opened Friday morning despite being a massive underdog before tip.

Coach's Response

Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve had a blunt statement for her team's disappointing defensive effort, emphasizing that her team didn't rise to the occasion for what was clearly an important game in the MVP race. The Lynx won the previous three matchups against the Aces this season, but Thursday's outcome may be what voters remember most.

"It’s disappointing to waste a pretty solid offensive effort, shooting almost 54 percent, 41 percent from 3," Reeve said. "Our defense didn’t rise to the occasion today, credit to the Aces. It's really hard to beat a team four times, but I didn’t think we really helped ourselves with our effort on the defensive end.

"We were pretty pedestrian in that space. We saw a bunch of clips at halftime that were below average. Sometimes it was effort, other times it was focus. It’s not who we expect to be each time we play.”

The Lynx have three regular season games remaining, as they'll continue this current road trip in San Francisco against the Valkyries on Saturday and in Indiana against the Fever on Tuesday. Minnesota will then close the regular season at home with one final regular season matchup with the Valkyries on Thursday, though a playoff matchup isn't entirely out of the realm of possibilities yet.

Related Articles

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• Paige Bueckers Makes Heartfelt DiJonai Carrington Statement After Lynx-Wings

• Natisha Hiedeman’s Three-Letter Description for Napheesa Collier

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Will Despart
WILL DESPART

Will Despart is a Las Vegas-based sportswriter who covers the NBA for OnSI. He also writes for Ballislife and handles multiple beats for The Sporting Tribune, including the Las Vegas Aces and Las Vegas Raiders. His reporting has been featured in newspapers across the country through the Field Level Media news wire.

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