The Minnesota Lynx will be without their coach Cheryl Reeve for Game 4 of their semifinal playoff series with the Phoenix Mercury.
The WNBA announced on Saturday, Sept. 27, that Reeve has been suspended for one game because of her behavior on the court and the expletive-filled rant lambasting the officiating that occurred during the Mercury’s 84-76 win in Game 3 at PHX Arena the previous night. Phoenix is one win away from advancing to the WNBA Finals.
Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve reacts after being ejected from the game during their 84-76 loss to the Phoenix Mercury during Game 3 of WNBA semifinals at PHX Arena on Sept. 26, 2025.
The league issued a statement that said, “Her conduct and comments included aggressively pursuing and verbally abusing a game official on the court, failure to leave the court in a timely manner upon her ejection at 21.8 seconds to play in the fourth quarter, inappropriate comments made to fans when exiting the court, and remarks made in the postgame press conference.”
Reeve was handed her second technical foul and ejected. She screamed at an official after Napheesa Collier, the Lynx’s 2025 MVP runner-up, had the ball stolen from her by the Mercury’s Alyssa Thomas, who scored a layup that extended the lead to 82-76. Collier’s leg was injured on that play.
Advertisement
Two of Reeve’s assistant coaches, Eric Thibault and Rebekkah Brunson, were fined for their actions toward the end of and after Game 3. Thibault was cited for his “inappropriate interaction with an official on the court” after Reeve was ejected. Brunson posted an “inappropriate social media comment directed at WNBA officials.”
Collier was seen by the media wheeled on a scooter nursing her left leg entering the PHX Arena’s training room to be treated by medical staff. No foul was called on the play. The NBA and WNBA league officials’ account X, titled “NBA Referees,” posted a video of the play and explained why there wasn’t a foul despite the contact between Collier and Thomas.
“Thomas legally gets to the ball and knocks the ball loose prior to any contact,” the post’s caption said. “The leg to leg contact is incidental once the ball is clearly loose. This was correctly judged in real time as a no call as were the subsequent technical fouls.”
Reeve said during her postgame comments that she wants a “change in leadership” from the league in reference to the officiating, adding that Collier “probably has a fracture” in her leg, but didn’t specify where.
Advertisement
The Mercury lead the best-of-five series 2-1 and could advance to the WNBA Finals with a win Sunday, Sept. 28. The game starts at 5 p.m. at PHX Arena and will air on ESPN. If the Mercury win, they’ll be in the finals for the first time since 2021, when they lost to the Chicago Sky.
Check back at azcentral for more on this developing story.
More: Phoenix Mercury one win away from WNBA Finals
(This story was updated to add new information)
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve suspended by WNBA over actions during Game 3
