This browser does not support the Video element.
Lynx players react after playoffs loss
Without their best player and their head coach, the Minnesota Lynx came out strong against the Phoenix Mercury in a must-win Game 4, but the team's season came to an end after a fourth-quarter run by Phoenix.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Without their best player and their head coach, the Minnesota Lynx came out strong against the Phoenix Mercury in a must-win Game 4, but the team's season came to an end after a fourth-quarter run by Phoenix.
Lynx season comes to end
What we know:
An injury to Napheesa Collier and a suspension handed down to Cheryl Reeve left the Lynx shorthanded coming into Game 4. It was win or go home for good for the Lynx, who trailed the Mercury 2-1 in the best-of-five series.
With the playoffs on the line, the Lynx rallied, pulling ahead by double-digits in the first quarter. The Mercury outscored the Lynx in the second, making it a tied game at half. In the second half, the Lynx again came out the door with a run that put them up 13 points.
The Lynx were led by Kayla McBride who scored a blazing 31 points, including shooting 6-11 from three. Courtney Williams chipped in another 20 points.
By the numbers:
The Lynx's push fell apart in the fourth quarter, as the team was outscored 31-13.
Minnesota Lynx huddle up during the game against the Phoenix Mercury during Game Four of the 2025 WNBA Playoffs semifinals on September 28, 2025 at PHX Arena in Phoenix, Arizona. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloadi …
What they're saying:
McBride was visibly emotional during postgame interviews.
"It's the people that I go to work with everyday," she said. "I've been here five years and to be so close. You just want it for the people around you. You just want it for the people who grind with you every day, good days, bad days… In pro sports, it doesn't get any better than what we have in our locker room. That's why I'm emotional, because we lay it out for each other."
"To be close two years in a row and hit adverse situation each and every time, for the people that you love, for your sisters, your family," she added. "S--- f--king hurts. It's hard especially when you lay everything out there."
What's next:
With the win, the Mercury punched their ticket to the WNBA Finals. For the Lynx, the team heads to the offseason with Collier and star defender DiJonai Carrington nursing injuries.