MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Napheesa Collier had 18 points and 11 rebounds, Natisha Hiedeman also scored 18 points, and the Minnesota Lynx beat the Phoenix Mercury 88-65 on Tuesday night for their second series victory in five days.
Minnesota has started a season 8-0 for the fourth time in franchise history — the same amount as all of the other WNBA teams combined.
After trailing 23-14 with 44.5 seconds left in the first quarter, the Lynx outscored the Mercury 49-23 to take a 63-46 lead with 2:41 remaining in the third.
Minnesota went on a 9-0 run midway through the fourth on a three-point play by Collier and back-to-back 3-pointers by Bridget Carleton and Kayla McBride to make it 80-56.
McBride, Alanna Smith and Karlie Samuelson each made three of Minnesota’s 12 3-pointers.
Smith and McBride each scored 13 points for Minnesota. McBride also had a team-high seven assists. The Lynx finished with a season-high 29 assists on 34 made field goals, but also turned it over 23 times.
Lexi Held scored 16 points and Satou Sabally had 15 points and eight rebounds for Phoenix (5-3). Kitija Laksa added 10 points.
Sabally scored her first points of the second half with 6:56 left in the fourth quarter.
The Lynx also beat the Mercury 74-71 on Friday without Collier, who was out with a lingering knee injury.
AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball
Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier (24) passes while defended by Phoenix Mercury center Kalani Brown (21) during the second half of a WNBA basketball game Tuesday, June 3, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Minnesota Lynx guard Kayla McBride (21) points after making a three-point shot during the second half of a WNBA basketball game against the Phoenix Mercury, Tuesday, June 3, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Minnesota Lynx players celebrate after a WNBA basketball game against the Phoenix Mercury, Tuesday, June 3, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
A Ukrainian drone strike killed one person and wounded three others in the Russian city of Voronezh, local officials said Sunday.
A young woman died overnight in a hospital intensive care unit after debris from a drone fell on a house during the attack on Saturday, regional Gov. Alexander Gusev said on Telegram.
Three other people were wounded and more than 10 apartment buildings, private houses and a high school were damaged, he said, adding that air defenses shot down 17 drones over Voronezh. The city is home to just over 1 million people and lies some 250 kilometers (155 miles) from the Ukrainian border.
The attack came the day after Russia bombarded Ukraine with hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles overnight into Friday, killing at least four people in the capital Kyiv, according to Ukrainian officials.
For only the second time in the nearly four-year war, Russia used a powerful new hypersonic missile that struck western Ukraine in a clear warning to Kyiv and NATO.
The intense barrage and the launch of the nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile followed reports of major progress in talks between Ukraine and its allies on how to defend the country from further aggression by Moscow if a U.S.-led peace deal is struck.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Saturday in his nightly address that Ukrainian negotiators “continue to communicate with the American side.”
Chief negotiator Rustem Umerov was in contact with U.S. partners Saturday, he said.
Separately, Ukraine’s General Staff said Russia targeted Ukraine with 154 drones overnight into Sunday and 125 were shot down.
Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
This photo provided by the Ukrainian Security Service on Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, shows a fragment believed to be a part of a Russian Oreshnik intermediate range hypersonic ballistic missile that hit the Lviv region. (Ukrainian Security Service via AP)
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, second left, listens to British Defense Secretary John Healey during their meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Danylo Antoniuk)
