Anthony Kay Renaissance Season Continues, Collier/Juhasz Clinch Playoff Spot

Anthony Kay 

The southpaw won back-to-back starts for the third time this season after pitching six innings, scattered six hits, allowed two earned runs with one walk and four strikeouts in a 6-3 White Sox victory against the Cleveland Guardians on Saturday night. 

Kay ran into trouble in the bottom of the second inning after the Guardians loaded the bases with two outs. The southpaw struck out Cleveland’s leadoff hitter Steven Kwan on three pitches to escape the threat. Kay retired nine of the next 11 batters and didn't allow a run until the sixth inning. 

Angel Martinez hit a one-out double for the Guardians’ first extra base hit of the ballgame. Next batter Rhys Hoskins delivered a two-run home run to give the Guardians a 2-0 lead. Kay was able to settle in and get the next two batters to ground out to limit the damage. The White Sox responded by scoring five runs in the bottom of the sixth to ensure Kay picked up the much-deserved victory.

The win improved Kay’s record to 9-5 and lowered his ERA to 3.96. The nine wins are tied for most on the team, along with Davis Martin. Kay, who pitched 6 ⅓ innings in last start against the Rays last Sunday, has pitched at least six innings in back-to-back starts for the first time in his major league career.

Before the 2026 season, Kay last pitched in the MLB back in 2023 but pitched well in the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) in Japan over the last two seasons. Last year, Kay posted a 1.74 ERA with 130 strikeouts and just 41 walks across 155 innings for the Yokohama Bay Stars.

Kay’s success in Japan earned him a two-year $12 million deal with the White Sox this past offseason.

And he has taken full advantage of that opportunity.

Naphessa Collier/Dorka Juhasz

On Thursday, the Los Angeles Sparks scored the game’s final eight points to snap the Minnesota Lynx’s 10-game winning streak, the longest in the WNBA this season, with an 89-82 victory in Minnesota. Naphessa Collier scored 21 points on 10-of-20 shooting with eight rebounds, six assists and one steal in 31 minutes. Dorka Juhasz was held scoreless in eight minutes.

Collier scored 13 of those points in the first half and only scored two points on one shot attempt during the entire fourth quarter.

The Lynx bounced back on Saturday with a 98-87 victory over the Las Vegas Aces in Minnesota. Collier poured in 22 points on 7-of-14 shooting behind 5-of-7 from three and 3-of-4 from the free throw line. She also added six rebounds, three assists and two blocks in 35 minutes. The five three-pointers are a career-high for Collier. Her personal best at UConn came when she sank three three-pointers in an 81-45 win over South Florida in the 2019 Big East Tournament semifinals.

Juhasz knocked in a three-pointer in 10 minutes off the bench.

Collier did not register a single point until the second quarter, when she connected on her first three-pointer of the ball game with 8:04 left to give the Lynx a 33-31 lead. In the second quarter she made two more triples plus an assist to an Olivia Miles three-pointer to extend Minnesota’s lead to 49-45 with just 24.8 seconds left in the first half. The five-time WNBA All-Star scored 16 points in the second half, highlighted by three three-pointers in the third quarter.

Golden State Huskies at Paige Bueckers/Azzi Fudd

The Golden State Valkyries won their third straight game on Friday night after taking out the Dallas Wings 94-76 inside the American Airlines Arena, home of the Dallas Mavericks and where the Wings will play their home games next season.

The Valkyries recorded a franchise record 27 assists, 14 of them coming from Kaityln Chen (5), Gabby Williams (4), Kiah Stokes (3) and Tiffany Hayes (2). Williams led all Husky scorers with 19 points in only 22 minutes of action. Paige Bueckers accounted for 17 points for the Wings. Hayes scored seven of her nine points from the free throw line, Kiah Stokes added seven points, seven assists, and two blocks. While Chen posted two points in the 18-point road win for the Valkyries. 

Azzi Fudd did not play due to right knee soreness.

Naphessa Collier/Dorka Juhasz at Paige Bueckers/Azzi Fudd

In the Minnesota Lynx’s third game in four days, they defeated the Dallas Wings 103-90 on Sunday afternoon in the fourth of four consecutive home games. The Lynx (27-7) went 2-1 during that stretch and have secured the first playoff spot in the 2026 postseason. Meanwhile, the Wings’ (19-14) slide continues as they have now lost three games in a row, including five out of six.

Back in her home state of Minnesota, Paige Bueckers scored a team-high 23 points on 10-of-15 shooting with four rebounds, eight assists, and three steals in 31 minutes. Naphessa Collier scored 17 points behind a trio of three-pointers with eight rebounds, three assists, four steals, and one block in 35 minutes. Dorka Juhasz did not score in nine minutes. Azzi Fudd did not play for a second straight game due to right knee soreness.

The Lynx held a 47-45 halftime advantage, but Bueckers scored the first points of the third quarter on a fadeaway jumper to tie it at 47 apiece. Later in the quarter, Bueckers accounted for six straight Wings points after converting a layup, picking up an assist on an Alana Smith layup and then tying the game at 66 with 3:26 on another layup. Collier scored the last two Husky baskets of the quarter with a 14-foot jump shot, followed by a top of the key three-pointer with 2.5 seconds left to give Minnesota a 76-68 lead.

Collier’s third and final assist set up Kayla McBride for a three-pointer, which put the Lynx up 11 with 6:15 left to play. McBride scored a career-high 43 points behind a WNBA record 10 three-pointers made in a single game.

Golden State Huskies

The Golden State Valkyries (23-9) made it four wins a row on Sunday night after defeating the Los Angeles Sparks 84-78.

Tiffany Hayes scored 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting, including 2-of-3 from three and 2-of-2 from the free throw line. Hayes has now scored double-digits in three of her last four games. Gabby Williams netted 11 points while Kiah Stokes (five points, seven rebounds) and Kaitlyn Chen (six points, two assists) scored in the six-point victory.

Williams scored the first six Husky points to give the Valkyries a 14-4 first quarter lead. Stokes soon followed with her 18th pointer of the season to give Golden State a 13-point lead with 4:59 left in the opening quarter. Stokes made 17 three-pointers from 2023-2025. Hayes converted a layup and was fouled with under 90 seconds left in the first half. She would make the free throw to expand the Valkyrie lead to 29-13.

Golden State led by as many as 19 points after Chen made a layup to put her team up 66-47 with 9:36 left to play. However, the Sparks went on a 26-8 run to trim the deficit to just one with under two minutes remaining. Hayes connected on a clutch three-pointer to push the Valkyrie lead back to four, 74-70. Williams used the glass to her advantage on a short jumper and extended the lead to 76-73 with 1:03 left.

Olivia Nelson-Ododa/Aaliyah Edwards

Aaliyah Edwards returned to the lineup and was a major contributor in helping the Connecticut Sun (8-23) snap its five-game losing streak in a 75-72 victory against the Phoenix Mercury (12-21) on Friday night.

Edwards, who had missed the previous four games due to a right knee injury, scored 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting, including 4-of-5 from the free-throw line with eight rebounds in 24 minutes off the bench. Olivia Nelson-Ododa, who was dealing with an illness leading up to the game, recorded all seven of her points in the first half. She was limited to just 16 minutes, her fewest minutes played in more than a month and a half.

The Sun trailed by as many as 16 points in the first half, but scored 11 of the game’s first 15 points in the third quarter, including back-to-back baskets from Edwards. The former Husky star knocked in a 10-foot jumper, followed by a reverse layup to cut the Sun deficit to 44-39 with 6:35 left in the quarter. Later, Edwards connected on a 19-foot jumper to tie the game at 49.

In the fourth quarter, Edwards converted two free throws to cut the Mercury lead down to three, 61-58. A few minutes later, she scored on another layup to extend the Sun lead to 69-65 with 2:20 left to play.

Breanna Stewart

Breanna Stewart and the New York Liberty easily took care of the short-handed Las Vegas 111-71 on Sunday afternoon in Brooklyn. The Aces were playing its second straight games in as many days, therefore stars A’ja Wilson, Jackie Young, and Chelsea Gray all did not play due to rest.

Stewart netted 14 points with four rebounds, four assists and one steal in 23 minutes. Stewie also had one milestone rejection.

The 40-point win is the third such victory in program history. The Liberty defeated the Connecticut Sun by a franchise record 48 points last season, 100-52. New York also took down the Washington Mystics 88-45 on August 13th, 1998.

The Liberty (20-13) have now won four straight games and seven out of eight overall. The Aces (22-11) have dropped two games in a row for just the second time this season.

Azura Stevens (Chicago Sky)

It was great to see Azura Stevens back out on the floor on Saturday after missing the previous five games due to personal reasons. In her return, she netted seven points and five rebounds in 20 minutes. The Sky (12-20) fell to the Indiana Fever (20-12), 90-86.

Serah Williams (Portland Fire)

• Thursday vs Tempo: 2 points (1-4 FG) in 12 minutes. The Fire defeated the Toronto Tempo 97-83.
• Saturday vs Storm: 3 points (1-1 FG, 1-2 FT), 2 assists in 16 minutes. The Fire (13-19) defeated the Seattle Storm 00-93.

Kia Nurse (Toronto Tempo)

• Thursday at Fire: 4 points (1-3 FG, 1-3 3-FG, 1-2 FT), 1 assist in 7 minutes. The Tempo (10-21) fell to the Portland Fire 97-83. 

Stefanie Dolson (Seattle Storm)

• Saturday at Fire: Scoreless in 10 minutes. The Storm (6-28) fell to the Portland Fire 100-93.

Katie Lou Samuelson (Seattle Storm)

• Saturday at Fire: DNP (Right Knee soreness)

Nika Muhl (Portland Fire)

Nika Muhl was introduced to the Portland Fire fans for the first time on Saturday. Despite tearing her second ACL this past March while playing for her Turkish club, the Fire drafted the former star in the WNBA Expansion Draft this past April.

Muhl, who will not play this season, spoke to both the fans and the media.

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