July 8, 2026

Win No. 380: Cheryl Reeve's Third Try Leads Three WNBA Games Tonight

The Lynx coach chases the all-time wins record in Connecticut, Caitlin Clark is probable to return from a back injury in Los Angeles, and the Valkyries go for a franchise-record sixth straight in Toronto. Every tipoff time and channel below.

Minnesota Lynx (15-6) at Connecticut Sun (5-16): Cheryl Reeve's third shot at 380

Tipoff 7:30 PM ET / 4:30 PM PT at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. National TV: USA Network, also streaming on DIRECTV.

This is the storyline of the night, and it has been building all week. Cheryl Reeve is tied with Mike Thibault at 379 regular-season wins, the all-time WNBA coaching record. She has been denied twice in five days: Friday's 99-86 loss to the Liberty, and Monday's 90-89 loss to these same Sun at Target Center in Minneapolis. Tonight is attempt number three, and it comes on the road in Uncasville against the team that just beat her.

The irony is hard to miss. The Sun are 5-16, last in the standings, but they have won three of their last four and just took down a Lynx squad that had won 15 of its first 19 games. Brittney Griner went for a season-high 29 points and 10 rebounds Monday, and Kennedy Burke hit two clutch threes in the final three minutes off the bench. Kayla McBride scored 28 for Minnesota, and Courtney Williams added 23 points and nine rebounds, but the Lynx could not overcome the absence of rookie Olivia Miles.

Miles, the Rookie of the Year frontrunner averaging 18.5 points and 5.7 assists, missed Monday with a right calf strain, the first absence of her career, and she is listed as doubtful for Wednesday. Napheesa Collier remains out with an ankle injury, though she has returned to practice. Emma Cechova is done for the season with a torn ACL. For Connecticut, Aneesah Morrow is out for personal reasons. So Reeve may have to chase history shorthanded, again, against a team that already proved it can beat her at full strength and at home. The Lynx opened as 7.5-point favorites, but Monday showed the spread means little when Griner is rolling and the underdog's shots are falling.

Indiana Fever (12-8) at Los Angeles Sparks (8-11): Caitlin Clark is probable to return

Tipoff 10:00 PM ET / 7:00 PM PT at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. National TV: USA Network and CNBC, also streaming on DIRECTV and YouTube TV.

Caitlin Clark is probable to return Wednesday night after missing nearly two weeks with a back injury sustained in a June 24 loss to Phoenix. She practiced Tuesday in Los Angeles and told reporters she is "very hopeful" to play, though she expects a minutes restriction, hoping for slightly more than 20 in her first appearance in over a week. She also said playing both games of the back-to-back would be difficult, meaning Thursday's showdown in Phoenix is likely off the table if she goes tonight.

The context matters. Clark's June 24 exit came after Phoenix forward Alyssa Thomas was suspended one game for making contact with Clark's throat, a play that set off a league-wide debate about physical play. Clark has missed three of Indiana's first 20 games this season after appearing in just 13 of 44 a year ago, so the Fever are being cautious by design.

Indiana has not skipped a beat without her. The Fever are 3-0 without Clark this season, including Sunday's 84-68 win over the defending champion Aces in Las Vegas, where Kelsey Mitchell dropped 27. Mitchell is averaging 21.9 points per game, second in the league, just ahead of Clark's 21.2. Clark's 8.2 assists rank second in the WNBA. Aliyah Boston is questionable with a right lower leg injury. The Sparks have lost three straight and sit at 8-11, and they already lost to this Fever team once this season without Clark, when Mitchell scored 26. A shorthanded Clark on a minutes limit, on the road, against a desperate opponent, is not the gimme the records suggest.

Golden State Valkyries (15-7) at Toronto Tempo (9-11): a franchise-record streak on the line

Tipoff 7:00 PM ET / 4:00 PM PT at Coca-Cola Coliseum in Toronto. This one is not on national cable TV. Watch on WNBA League Pass (available as an Amazon Prime Video add-on). Bay Area viewers can also catch the local broadcast on KPIX and KOVR 13, and Canadian viewers get TSN and CTV.

The Valkyries bring the league's longest active winning streak into Toronto. They have won five straight, tied for the franchise record, and a sixth would set a new mark. The run is built on defense: Golden State allows a league-best 76.8 points per game and commits a league-low 10.5 turnovers, per the game preview. They held Washington to 49 on Monday. Gabby Williams leads the scoring at 15.3 per game, but the identity is defense and ball security, not firepower.

Toronto is the opposite profile. The Tempo score 90.1 points per game, third in the league, but allow 91.8, second-worst. Marina Mabrey averages 21.1 points and knocks down 3.5 threes. Toronto has dropped two straight, including an 89-76 home loss to Dallas on Sunday, and now draws the league's stingiest defense on a record-chasing tear. It is the first tip of the night and a genuine clash of styles: the best defense in the WNBA against one of its highest-scoring offenses.

Last night: Shepard's triple-double downs the Liberty; Sky win without Diggins

Two games finished Tuesday night, both carrying storylines forward from Monday's issue.

The Dallas Wings beat the New York Liberty 88-77 on ESPN at Barclays Center, the game that doubled as ESPN's 30-year WNBA anniversary broadcast. Jessica Shepard posted her third triple-double of the season, 22 points, 12 rebounds, and 11 assists, and the Wings pulled away in the second half. Breanna Stewart scored 29 with 9 rebounds and 4 assists in the loss. Dallas improves to 14-8; New York falls to 13-9.

The Chicago Sky beat the Phoenix Mercury 77-66 on the road, snapping Phoenix's three-game winning streak. Rookie Sydney Taylor scored 10 of her 16 in the third quarter, and the Sky shook up their starting lineup and cranked up the defense after the Skylar Diggins situation surfaced. Diggins, who had been benched for the first time since 2016 amid frustration with coach Tyler Marsh, was a late scratch with a right knee injury and did not play. The Sky won anyway, improving to 7-14. Phoenix falls to 8-14, with Kahleah Copper scoring 25 in the loss.

Want the next one?

Every new WNBA Tonight issue by email. One tap to unsubscribe.