The Minnesota Lynx beat the Indiana Fever 108-100 on Sunday, extending their winning streak to 10 games. But the game was also the backdrop for rallies outside Target Center and gatherings of supporters and critics inside the arena over comments Fever guard Sophie Cunningham made about transgender athletes — the third straight Fever road game to draw that kind of demonstration.
Cunningham told ESPN — in a profile that ran roughly the week before these rallies began, with outlets citing a publish date around July 21, 2026 — that she opposes transgender athletes competing against “biological girls/women” in sports, saying she wants to “protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn’t have to go against biological men.” The comments have followed the Fever from city to city ever since, drawing both supporters and critics to arenas along the way.
Key facts
- Final score: Lynx 108, Fever 100 — Minnesota’s 10th straight win, its longest streak since 2016
- Rallies over Cunningham’s trans-athlete comments took place outside Target Center, while supporters and critics also gathered inside
- Crowd estimates outside varied: about 100 per the Star Tribune, closer to two dozen per other outlets
- Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve coached in a “Trans kids belong” T-shirt under her jacket
- Cunningham says she is not behind the rallies and isn’t worried they’re a distraction
- This marked the third consecutive Fever road game to draw this kind of demonstration
- One report says the WNBA has not instituted a formal league-wide ban on transgender athletes
What happened at the game
The Associated Press reported that critics and supporters of Cunningham’s stance gathered around and inside Target Center on Sunday, some carrying signs and wearing shirts backing Cunningham and others expressing support for transgender people. The crowd outside was modest: the Star Tribune put the figure at about 100, while other outlets described the group as closer to two dozen. Former ESPN broadcaster and current Republican U.S. Senate candidate Michele Tafoya was among those who attended the Minneapolis rally in support of Cunningham, according to the Star Tribune.
Before tipoff, amid the rallies outside, Cunningham and Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve had a conversation at midcourt; neither has said publicly what was discussed, so it’s not known whether it touched on the controversy at all. Reeve then coached the game wearing a light blue T-shirt reading “Trans kids belong” under her jacket. The AP reported that Cunningham appeared to be booed by parts of the crowd on her first touch of the ball, and other outlets reported the booing continued each time she touched it during the game — though it’s not possible to say every reaction from the crowd that day was specifically about her comments.
Cunningham has pushed back on the idea that she’s behind the rallies. Speaking in Portland on July 31, days before the Minneapolis game, she said she wasn’t worried the demonstrations were becoming a distraction and that she had “nothing to do with them.”
The game itself
On the court, Minnesota controlled things from the start — the Lynx scored 36 points in the first quarter, tying a league record for an opening period, and led 64-53 at halftime. Rookie Olivia Miles led Minnesota with 28 points and Courtney Williams added 27. For Indiana, Kelsey Mitchell scored a game-high 37 points, and Caitlin Clark added 19 points and 10 assists. Cunningham finished with 3 points, 1 rebound and 2 assists in 23 minutes. The win was Minnesota’s 10th in a row — its longest streak since 2016 — and attendance was listed at 16,505, with a sizable contingent of Fever fans on hand, partly drawn by Clark’s ties to nearby Iowa.
Asked afterward about the broader controversy surrounding her teammate, Clark said the team’s focus was on basketball and that it’s up to leagues and governing bodies, not individual players, to work through the trans-athlete policy question.
Why this kept following the Fever
This was the third consecutive Fever road game to draw a rally tied to Cunningham’s comments. Days earlier, at a July 28 game between the Fever and the Seattle Storm, the WNBA fined Storm co-owner Celeste Keaton and suspended her from the team’s next five home games after an alleged verbal confrontation with two teenage fans who were wearing gear supporting Cunningham’s position. The league has not released details of what was said, and no names or other identifying details about those fans have been made public.
One report says the WNBA has not instituted a formal league-wide ban on transgender athletes, unlike the NCAA, which banned transgender athletes from women’s college sports the year before. There’s also no indication the league has disciplined Cunningham over her comments.
What’s next
Both teams are back in action Thursday, Aug. 6: the Fever host the Las Vegas Aces at home, and the Lynx host the Los Angeles Sparks. Given how the last three Fever road trips have gone, it’s an open question whether the rallies — and the attention that comes with them — will travel to Indiana as well.