Lynx blow out Valkyries, setting up first-round WNBA playoff series rematch

Dominant defense, Natisha Hiedeman and Napheesa Collier lead the way in a rout to end the regular season.

The Minnesota Star Tribune
September 12, 2025 at 5:38AM
Valkyries center (and former Lynx player) Temi Fagbenle (14) defends as Lynx forward Napheesa Collier (24) puts up a shot in the first half on Thursday at Target Center. (Richard Tsong-Taatarii/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

The Lynx handed out pink wigs Thursday night to celebrate the hairstyles of Courtney Williams and Natisha Hiedeman, the “Studbudz” of social media fame.

After defeating Golden State 72-53 at Target Center, they turned their attention to something just as eye-catching but a little more substantial: trophies and rings.

After two weeks of games that meant nothing to them in terms of playoff seeding, the Lynx played their final regular-season game. This one again did not affect seeding, but it was hardly meaningless.

Defeat Golden State, and the Lynx would begin the postseason against Golden State. Lose, and Seattle — a team that has beaten the Lynx twice this year — would be the opponent.

The Lynx will face Golden State, an expansion team against whom they went 4-0 this season.

Lynx star Napheesa Collier made three of her four three-point attempts to become the second player in WNBA history, after Washington’s Elena Delle Donne in 2019, to reach the 90-50-40 benchmark — 90% shooting from the free-throw line, 50% from the field and 40% from the three-point line.

Collier’s final three-point shooting percentage: 40.3.

“It can be revealed now, but it was a goal of ours when we sat down with Phee, knowing that it would be a lofty goal, and had only been done once before, and that player was MVP of the league,” Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve said. “The numbers don’t lie. That’s something the voter should look at. … Napheesa Collier has been the best player in the WNBA this season and deserves to be MVP.”

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Hiedeman spent the last month of the season bolstering her case to win the Sixth Player of the Year award. She scored a game-high 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting while making twisting, spinning layups in traffic.

She entered the postgame interview room promoting Collier’s feats, though, saying, “Y’all know how Phee finished the season, right? OK — 50, 40, 90. You know what’s going on.”

In the first quarter, the Lynx, the top-rated defensive team in the league, gave up only eight points. Reeve said she wasn’t happy with her team’s defense, but to hold a playoff team to eight points in a quarter and 22 in the first half is remarkable.

The Lynx tied a WNBA record with their 34th victory of the season, and they finished the regular season 20-2 at Target Center.

Reeve had given her top players a game off here and there over the past two weeks. Thursday, every healthy player was available. DiJonai Carrington, a valuable bench player acquired during the season, remains out because of a shoulder injury.

The wig giveaway created an odd visual, when looking at the stands from the court. With the overwhelming majority of fans wearing the pink wigs, it looked like the stands were filled with large bags of cotton candy.

The Lynx took a 34-22 halftime lead on the strength of Collier’s efficient shooting, and despite shooting zero free throws as a team. The 22 points represented the fewest allowed by the Lynx in a first half this season.

By the end of the night, though, the talk was not of D, but of Phee and “T.”

Collier admitted that she wanted to get her three-point shooting percentage over 40% on Thursday night. “Yeah, it’s a goal that Cheryl gave me in the beginning of the year,” Collier said. “It’s just like a sense of accomplishment. I’m a very goal-oriented person, so when I accomplish those, it just feels good.”

Collier was thrilled but understated, while “T” — Hiedeman’s nickname — couldn’t contain her glee.

“I love this girl,” Hiedeman said, nodding toward Collier. “Just how she’s a leader, a teammate, everything. She deserves this. She works hard for this. Congratulations.”

The Lynx will play Golden State on Sunday at Target Center at noon at the beginning of a best-of-three playoff series. Game 2 will be in San Francisco on Wednesday and Game 3, if necessary, would be back in Minnesota next Friday.

“They’re a really hard-working, scrappy team,” Collier said. “I don’t expect it to be like tonight. I expect it to be a fight.”

about the writer

about the writer

Jim Souhan

Columnist

Jim Souhan is a sports columnist for the Minnesota Star Tribune. He has worked at the paper since 1990, previously covering the Twins and Vikings.

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