Their backs against the wall, the Minnesota Lynx showed the heart of a team wanting a championship.

From left to right, Minnesota Lynx forward Jessica Shepard, Phoenix Mercury forward Natasha Mack and Lynx forward Alanna Smith battle for the ball during the first half of Game 4 of a WNBA basketball playoff semifinals series, Sunday, Sept. 28, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Samantha Chow)

But a team that led the WNBA standings from the outset and finished with a league-record 34 regular-season wins will not get a chance to compete for the ultimate prize.

The shorthanded Lynx were again dominated in the fourth quarter Sunday night and fell 86-81 to Phoenix in Game 4 of a best-of-five semifinal series. The host Mercury won the final three games, the only time all season Minnesota lost three in a row.

“In pro sports, it doesn’t get any better than what we have in our locker room, and that’s why I’m emotional because we lay it out for each other. … For the people that you love, your sisters, your family this (bleep) hurts,” said Kayla McBride, who had a postseason career-high 31 points, including six 3-pointers. “I wouldn’t trade that locker room for anything. I would feel like this 100 times over to be with the people I’ve been with. That’s why it’s painful, because you want it to keep going.”

Courtney Williams added 17 points and six assists, and Jessica Shepard was thrust into the starting lineup and finished with 14 points and seven rebounds.

Minnesota played without Napheesa Collier, who was on the bench in a walking boot after injuring her ankle in Game 3 in a late collision with Alyssa Thomas. As the players collided, Thomas made a steal, Collier’s ankle turned in an ugly way, and Thomas scored alone on a layup.

DiJonai Carrington #3 and Napheesa Collier #24 of the Minnesota Lynx watch warmups before Game Four of the 2025 WNBA Playoffs semifinals against the Phoenix Mercury at PHX Arena on Sept. 28, 2025 in Phoenix, Arizona. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

It ultimately led to coach Cheryl Reeve being suspended by the league for Game 4 for “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 with 21.8 seconds to play in the fourth quarter, inappropriate comments made to fans when exiting the court, and remarks made in a postgame press conference.”

Associate head coach Eric Thibault was not surprised by the Lynx resiliency.

“I think everybody already knew it about this team, I don’t think they had to prove it tonight, but it’s another example of it. The way we came out to start the game,” he said, referencing early 12-1 and 14-3 leads.

“With everything that’s gone on the past couple days the way these guys came out and played and took their run in the second quarter (24-13 Phoenix) and came out and did the same thing in the second half (30-17 Minnesota in the third quarter). At certain points that’s who you are, and that’s who these guys have been for a long time.”

Minnesota led by 13 going into the final 10 minutes but was outscored 31-13 in the fateful fourth quarter. In the last three games, Phoenix outscored Minnesota 87-43 in the final frame and overtime.

“They switched and they made it hard for us, and we just didn’t get enough quality shots down the stretch,” Thibault said. “We did a good job taking care of the ball, but we got up against the shot clock on a bunch of possessions.”

Phoenix scored 22 of the first 25 points in the quarter for a 77-73 lead. Leading by three, Thomas took advantage of a sleeping defense for a driving layup and an 81-76 advantage with 27 seconds left. The Mercury were 10 of 12 from the field in the fourth quarter.

Treys by the StudBudz — Williams and Natisha Hiedeman — got the Lynx within 84-81 with 5.2 seconds left, but Minnesota got no closer.

McBride made all four of her 3-pointers in the third quarter — Lynx were 6 of 7 as a team — as part of the 30-point frame and a 68-55 Lynx led with 10 minutes to play. It was the highest-scoring quarter of the series for Minnesota.

Minnesota, 3 of 16 in the final frame of Friday’s Game 3, missed nine of its first 10 fourth-quarter shots and finished 5 of 18.

Related Articles

Lynx once again staring adversity in the face as playoff venue shifts

Lynx blow 20-point second-half lead as Mercury tie semifinals in OT

Lynx defense brings home Game 1 victory over Phoenix

Lynx pull away to easy Game 1 victory over Golden State

Lynx beat Golden State in finale, get Valkyries in playoff opener

On Sept. 19, President Donald Trump issued a proclamation that imposes a new $100,000 fee on each H-1B visa that a company applies for.

This change could impact non-U.S. physician recruitment at Mayo Clinic, which applies to sponsor hundreds of potential employees’ H-1B visas each year, per data from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

This type of visa allows non-U.S. professionals in specialty occupations to work in the country for up to six years.

Typically, the cost for an employer to sponsor an H-1B visa is $3,380, said Bo Cooper, a Washington, D.C.-based immigration attorney and partner at Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernsen & Loewy.

“The new $100,000 fee is a big jump, but it does not apply across the board to every H-1B, or every year, as had been initially indicated,” Cooper said. “It is a one-time fee that applies to new petitions filed on or after Sept. 21, 2025, and the government has stated that it doesn’t affect existing H-1B visa holders or extensions with the same employer.”

Mayo Clinic is the third-largest sponsor of H-1B visas in Minnesota; it has had 366 applications approved in 2025 and 390 in 2024.

Mayo Clinic did not respond to email messages from the Post Bulletin.

The University of Minnesota is another big sponsor of H-1B visas, having had 165 approved this year.

“The university is aware of the proclamation and will continue to keep all members of our community who are affected by immigration policies well-informed so they can best navigate their responsibilities in compliance with law and policy,” the university said in a statement. “Recruiting international students and scholars has been and will remain a firm commitment.”

Physicians make up the bulk of Mayo Clinic’s H-1B visa holders, per H1B Grader. In 2025, 153 of Mayo Clinic’s approved H-1B applications were for clinical residents. Non-U.S. doctors must complete a medical residency in the U.S. or Canada in order to practice medicine in the U.S.

On Sept. 22, Bloomberg first reported that the Trump administration may exempt physicians from the $100,000 fee.

“The proclamation does allow for exemptions where the Department of Homeland Security decides the employment is in the U.S. national interest,” Cooper said. “We don’t yet know exactly which roles will qualify, but it’s possible that positions in critical sectors, like health care, could be included, reflecting the continued need for skilled international talent in essential roles.”

But, as previously reported by the Post Bulletin, physicians aren’t the only foreign professionals recruited by Mayo Clinic. Other job titles for H-1B visa holders at Mayo Clinic include research associate, social worker, senior software engineer, nurse anesthetist and more.

Related Articles

One path to kick-starting a healthier lifestyle: Start small

St. Paul caregiver wins scholarship after extra effort with 92-year-old patient

Don’t be scared to say the wrong thing (or nothing) at a funeral

A surgical team was about to harvest this man’s organs — until his doctor intervened

Ticks are migrating, raising disease risks if they can’t be tracked quickly enough

Legal challenges against the new fee are likely, Cooper said, “though it is difficult to predict the result.”

“Congress and the Supreme Court have provided broad leeway to restrict the entry of people or classes of people whose entry (Trump) finds would be detrimental to the interests of the United States,” he continued, “but this proclamation is different in important ways from prior exercises of this authority, and H-1B fees are an area where Congress has already spoken in detail. For now, employers and foreign nationals are watching closely to see how these new rules will play out for high-priority hires.”

The glimpse Minnesota Wild fans got on Sunday night of what the regular season roster will look like eventually was partial, at best.

They got a look at Minnesota’s presumptive No. 1 goalie, Filip Gustavsson, and a few of the veterans that are shoo-ins to be in the lineup on Oct. 9 when the Wild travel to St. Louis for the first of 82 regular season games. But there were enough tryouts happening for opportunistic prospects that there were a few of the breakdowns so common in preseason hockey.

The Chicago Blackhawks emerged with a 4-1 win, dropping the Wild to 1-2-1 in September, with two more games to go in the preseason. Frank Nazar, the former Michigan standout, had a pair of early goals and completed the hat trick in the final minute with an empty-net goal.

“The result wasn’t what we wanted, but I felt tonight’s game, probably from a structural standpoint and a work ethic standpoint, more of the identity of the identity we want to play with was there for large portions of the game,” Wild coach John Hynes said. “We didn’t get rewarded for some of those.”

Hunter Haight continued his full-bore campaign to begin October at the NHL level, scoring his second goal of the preseason for the Wild in the second period after a backhand feed from Tyler Pitlick. Minnesota made a strong press to tie in the third before Ryan Donato gave Chicago important breathing room.

“Right from the start, I think I’ve showed really well, and progressing through camp, I just keep trying to do the same thing,” said Haight, who spent all of last season with the Iowa Wild. “At the end of the day, that’s why I’m here, to try and find a roster spot and every day try and get better.”

Gustavsson finished with 17 saves for the Wild, while Chicago goalie Drew Commesso stopped 28 shots.

Briefly

The Wild’s training camp roster got a little smaller on Sunday, and the Iowa Wild roster came into a bit sharper focus. Ten players who had been in St. Paul were sent to Des Moines. Forwards Bradley Marek and Riley Heidt, along with defensemen Kyle Masters and Jack Peart, were sent to Iowa. Six more — forwards Elliot Desnoyers, Jean-Luc Foudy, Mark Liwiski and Ryan Sandelin, and defensemen Mike Koster and Will Zmolek — were released from their pro tryouts and will also report to Iowa.

The training camp roster now stands at 42 with two preseason games remaining, Tuesday at home versus Winnipeg and Friday at Chicago.

Related Articles

Wild focused on David Jiricek’s skating, on-ice decisions

Ryan Hartman more settled, but still playing on the edge

Wild owner Craig Leipold pledges team will stay in St. Paul

Wild unveil 25th anniversary throwback sweater

Hunter Haight’s hard-charging ways earning notice by Wild

PHILADELPHIA — When Byron Buxton sits down this winter and reflects on his season, perhaps the number that will stick out to him the most is 126.

More important than the home runs — he hit a career-high 35 of them — or the 24 stolen bases, or any other stat from his all-star season, counts as much to Buxton and the Twins as the 126 games he was able to play this season.

That number represents the second-most Buxton has played in any single season in his career. He missed time for a concussion and ribcage inflammation this season, but neither ailment sidelined him for long.

“I just need to play. My numbers will be there. I don’t care about my numbers this year. I just want to play,” Buxton said. “Post up every day, be there for my teammates, play the majority of my time in center field, not DHing. That makes a difference, too. For me, being able to post up, that’s my biggest feeling, because I haven’t been able to.”

Buxton, who slashed .264/.327/.551 this year and was a five-win player, per FanGraphs, was out in center field for 118 of those 126 games. He made his second All-Star Game and participated the night before in the Home Run Derby in his home state of Georgia.

Though the team finished with 92 losses and the second-worst record in the American League, Buxton reaffirmed his loyalty to the Twins multiple times, both before and after the trade deadline.

“It is strange,” he said of having a career season while the team struggled. “I guess I just simplified it to take it one day at a time. Just be grateful to put this uniform on. Can’t play forever. I’ve definitely got to cherish every day I can.”

Now, Buxton will head into his second straight healthy offseason. Rather than recovering from surgery or spending his winter days in and out of physical therapy sessions, he can simply focus his attention on preparing for next season, building off of one of the best individual years in his career.

“He aced the test this season,” manager Rocco Baldelli said. “That’s what he did.”

Rotation shines

The Twins’ starting rotation saved its best for last.

The group of six turned in some of their strongest individual performances, ending Sunday with Simeon Woods Richardson, who threw six shutout innings against the Philadelphia Phillies, striking out nine.

“I thought we did a really good job of throwing the ball, throwing strikes, executing,” Woods Richardson said. “I think all of us starters went six. That’s huge for a rotation. … That’s what we want in a starting rotation.”

Well, almost all of them.

Joe Ryan gave up one earned run in five innings on Friday before Mick Abel, traded over from the Phillies at the deadline for Jhoan Duran, put up a six-inning shutout performance with nine strikeouts Saturday.

Those performances against one of baseball’s best offenses came after Zebby Matthews threw seven innings of one-run ball against the Texas Rangers, Taj Bradley gave up just a run in six innings against Texas, and Bailey Ober threw six scoreless.

“It might be the best stretch of pitching over a course of a week that we got all year,” Baldelli said. “I think that’s precisely what you’re hoping for. It’s showing everyone just what the group is capable of when they’re throwing the ball the way we want.”

Briefly

A division race that Detroit seemed to have well in hand for much of the season wound up coming down to the season’s final day with the Cleveland Guardians clinching the American League Central after their dramatic late-season comeback. Those teams now meet in the wild-card round this week in Cleveland. …  Former Twin Michael A. Taylor, the team’s center fielder in 2023, announced his retirement on Sunday. Taylor played 12 major league seasons, winning a World Series ring in 2019 with Washington.

Related Articles

Walk-off loss sends Twins into an offseason filled with uncertainty

Traded by Phillies, Twins starter Mick Abel dominates in win over former team

As season nears end, Twins manager Rocco Baldelli not focusing on job status

Joe Ryan wraps up best season of his career in Twins loss

Traded former Twins Jhoan Duran, Harrison Bader thriving in Philadelphia