The Aces have the second-worst fourth-quarter scoring margin in the league at minus-2.2. Their field goal percentage dives from 49.1 percent overall to 44.6 percent in the fourth quarter, while their 3-point percentage falls from 35.8 percent to 30.7. Their offensive rating plummets from 113.2 overall to 103.5 in the fourth.

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“We’ve got to find different ways to win,” point guard Chelsea Gray said. “It’s not going to always be clean and pretty. Our fourth quarter just has to be better. That’s been a trend as well … our fourth quarter just has to be better, be tighter on the road.”

Grand entrance

From Candace Parker’s MVP introduction in 2008 to Caitlin Clark’s shooting and playmaking in 2024, the WNBA has seen otherworldly rookie seasons.

Olivia Miles’s arrival as an All-WNBA-level talent in rookie packaging ranks among the best first seasons in league history. But what has made Miles’s season feel different is simple, but obvious: the winning.

The Minnesota Lynx are steamrolling through the league, extending their winning streak to 10 games with a victory over the Fever on Sunday despite Indiana scoring 100 points for a record sixth straight game.

Of the league’s 28 Rookie of the Year winners, 15 played for teams that finished with losing records. Tamika Catchings in 2002, Diana Taurasi in 2004, Tina Charles in 2010, and Clark were able to get their teams to .500. Napheesa Collier in 2019 and Angel McCoughtry in 2009 helped their teams finish 18-16.

But the level at which the Lynx are playing with a rookie floor general is rare.

Elena Delle Donne won Rookie of the Year in 2013 for a Sky team that went 24-10. Nneka Ogwumike won in 2012 while helping the Los Angeles Sparks go 24-10. Cheryl Ford won in 2003 for a Detroit Shock team that went 25-9 and won the championship.

The last player to win Rookie of the Year and a championship in the same season was Maya Moore in 2011, and she did it in a Lynx jersey.

Miles has an opportunity to do the same.

Who’s hooping?

Shakira Austin, Mystics: Washington is embracing its identity as an inside-out team, and it is leading to a career year for Austin. She gave the Mystics 25 points and six rebounds in a win over the Aces, then posted a 28-point, 10-rebound double-double against the Wings to help Washington push its winning streak to four games.

Sydney Taylor, Sky: After scoring a career-high 31 points against the Liberty, the rookie followed it up two games later by pushing through a difficult shooting night and scoring 29 in a comeback win over the Aces. She drained three fourth-quarter 3-pointers, including the winner with 0.9 seconds remaining.

Appointment viewing

Wings vs. Lynx, Sunday, 3:30 p.m.: Minnesota is riding a 10-game winning streak, the longest in the league this season. If the Lynx get past the Sparks on Thursday and the Aces on Saturday, they will have a chance to match the longest winning streak in franchise history — 13 in 2016 — when they face the Wings.

Sparks vs. Sky, Wednesday, 9 p.m.: The gap is only widening between teams in playoff positions and those fighting to stay in the picture. The Sparks are five games out of eighth place with 16 games remaining. The Sky are 5½ games back with 15 remaining entering Monday night against the Mercury.

Dream vs. Mystics, Friday, 7:30 p.m.: Despite averaging 15.6 points and 13.4 rebounds, with seven double-doubles, against the Mystics, Angel Reese is 2-6 against them in three seasons. One of those victories came in June, when she posted 18 points and 17 rebounds. The Dream are on a five-game winning streak, the Mystics have won four straight, and this game will decide the season series.

Julian Benbow can be reached at julian.benbow@globe.com.