Cheryl Reeve has spent the last 15 years building the Minnesota team into an elite team in the league and has a standard of addressing problems in both wins and losses. This standard was upheld after her team's 87-84 win over the Golden State Valkyries.

After the game, Reeve issued a statement and wasn't afraid to hold her players accountable after what was almost a game-losing mistake.

"This is where I throw the team under the bus, all five players on the floor knew we were fouling and we didn't get it in. They didn't get it done, and that's okay because she missed, had she made it, that would have been tough to swallow going to overtime. Big time learning lesson," Reeve said, via reporter Andrew Dukowitz.

Minnesota was quite literally seconds away from the game ending in a tie, as they were up only three points. In a game-ending tie scenario, the correct call would be for a Minnesota player to take an intentional foul to prevent a three-pointer.

The Lynx did nothing and allowed an attempt that was close to an overtime forcing three. Reeve said that the opponent missing the shot doesn't mean that the mistake will be overlooked.

The nerves that built up in the last few minutes of the game were overshadowed by the offense and Olivia Miles' remarkable performance. Miles was the leading scorer of the night with 28 points, 7 assists, and 4 rebounds.

She was followed in scoring by Courtney Williams with 17 points, Kayla McBride with 14 points, and Natasha Howard with a double-double, scoring 12 points and pulling down 10 rebounds.

This win brought the Lynx up to a record of 8-2 and gave the team a first-place standing in the Western Conference ahead of the Dallas Wings and the Las Vegas Aces. With this win, the Lynx extended their winning streak to 6 games.

Everyone knows that defense wins games, and during this game, Coach Reeve absolutely held her team to this standard. That said, one player was the star of the offense and also a record-breaker.

Olivia Miles Breaks WNBA Rookie Three-Point Record in Career Night

Olivia Miles silenced every doubter in one historic night. The Minnesota Lynx rookie guard scored a record-setting 28 points and hit eight 3-pointers in a thrilling 87-84 victory over the Golden State Valkyries to become the first rookie in WNBA history to hit that many 3-pointers in a game.

Miles continued her stellar play in the game by registering 7 assists and 4 rebounds.

Before this game, the only criticism Miles faced from the media was for her long-distance shooting. Miles shot a painful 11% from deep in her first 9 games.

Considering that difference, her first 9 games of the season should be judged in the context of their hype, but this game showed the potential that lies underneath.

10 games in, Miles has air-tight evidence for why the Rookie of the Year debate is over. Her season averages of 17 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 6.4 assists have made her a -310 favorite to win the award.

The Lynx get a rest day on Friday before welcoming the Seattle Storm to Target Center on Saturday for a noon CT tip-off on ABC.

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Written by

Utsav Gupta

Edited by

Utsav Gupta