Olivia Miles just delivered the play of the season

Olivia Miles scored 26 points and dished out seven assists as the Minnesota Lynx held on for a 98-87 win over the Las Vegas Aces today, clinching a WNBA playoff berth in the process. The win came in a genuine duel between two of the league’s top teams at Minneapolis.

Napheesa Collier added 22 points on 7-for-14 shooting for Minnesota, which improved to a league-best 26-7 and bounced back from a loss in its previous game against the Los Angeles Sparks. Natasha Howard contributed 17 points, nine rebounds and six assists, while Kayla McBride added 15 points. Jackie Young led Las Vegas with 23 points, making all eight of her free-throw attempts. A’ja Wilson scored 16 points and grabbed eight rebounds, while NaLyssa Smith added 14 and Dana Evans chipped in 11 off the bench. The loss dropped the Aces into third place overall, a half game behind the Golden State Valkyries.

How Olivia Miles set the tone early

Miles delivered one of the standout plays of her rookie season at the end of the first quarter. As the final seconds ticked down, she took the inbounds pass, pulled up just past halfcourt and banked in a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to put the Lynx ahead 28-25. McBride had already knocked down four 3-pointers of her own during a back-and-forth opening period.

Minnesota built its lead to six points in the second quarter before Young and Smith combined for four free throws to pull the Aces within one. Collier then found Miles at the top of the key, and the rookie buried another 3-pointer to send the Lynx into halftime up 49-45.

Why the third quarter shifted momentum toward Minnesota

Reserve Dorka Juhasz sparked a key stretch in the third quarter, setting up back-to-back 3-pointers with Courtney Williams that pushed Minnesota’s lead into double figures at 66-55. Las Vegas answered immediately with a 7-0 run keyed by a three-point play from Young, but Collier responded with seven straight points, including back-to-back 3-pointers off feeds from Miles, restoring Minnesota’s cushion.

Ayoooo Olivia Miles just fried A’ja Wilson and the Aces pic.twitter.com/BFhel9aTEX

— Ahmed/The Ears/IG: BigBizTheGod 🇸🇴 (@big_business_) August 8, 2026

How the Lynx closed out the win over the Aces

Las Vegas continued fighting into the fourth quarter. Jewell Loyd’s layup pulled the Aces within 78-72 with 7:24 remaining, but Minnesota answered with a 10-2 run, capped by another Miles 3-pointer from the top of the key, to push the lead back to 88-74 with 4:43 left.

Las Vegas trimmed the gap once more when Evans hit a pull-up jumper to make it 92-85 with 1:39 to go. A flagrant foul call on Loyd during a reckless closeout on McBride’s jump shot proved costly, as McBride made all three resulting free throws and Collier added two more to push Minnesota’s lead to 85-72 earlier in the quarter. Collier followed with a layup on the next possession after Evans’s late push, and the Lynx controlled the rest of the game from there. Miles finished the fourth quarter with 10 points.

What fueled Minnesota’s win beyond the box score

The Lynx also won the shooting battle from deep, hitting 51.7% of their 3-pointers (15 of 29) compared to 37.0% for Las Vegas (10 of 27). That efficiency from distance gave Minnesota the cushion it needed every time the Aces threatened to climb back into the game.

With the win, Minnesota has now clinched its spot in the WNBA playoffs while continuing to hold the league’s best record. The victory also extends a strong recent stretch for the Lynx, who have won multiple games in a row heading into the postseason push.