Fever beat Lynx 96-77; Miles out with calf strain

The Indiana Fever defeated the Minnesota Lynx 96-77 on Tuesday, evening the season series at 1-1 and securing home-court advantage for the first round of the playoffs. The win came two days after Indiana lost by double digits to the Washington Mystics.

Minnesota played without rookie standout Olivia Miles, who was scratched 90 minutes before tipoff with a strained left calf. Miles also missed the final regular-season game on Thursday. She had scored 21 points against Connecticut on Sunday, and coach Cheryl Reeve said the issue had persisted since then.

“We should be disappointed and embarrassed about the product that we put on the floor tonight.”

Miles previously missed two games in July with a right calf strain. Reeve acknowledged she probably should not have played Miles against the Sun. The Lynx had already clinched the No. 1 seed before Tuesday's game.

During Tuesday's game, cameras caught Fever assistant coach Briann January pointing at Caitlin Clark on the sideline. The moment went viral on social media, though no confirmation of an argument was provided. Clark posted a +11 plus-minus with 10 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists.

Clark had a heated exchange with head coach Stephanie White during Sunday's loss to the Mystics. The Fever have not commented on the nature of the conversation with January.

Minnesota lost four of its final five regular-season games after a 16-1 stretch. Napheesa Collier called the Tuesday performance "embarrassing." The Lynx rebounded Thursday with a blowout win over Indiana in the season finale.

The playoffs begin Sunday. Indiana enters as the higher seed in its first-round matchup, while Minnesota aims to win a fifth WNBA title.