It’s that time of the year: the WNBA Finals. The New York Liberty and Minnesota Lynx are playing for the championship this year. For the Liberty, this is their second consecutive trip to the finals. For the Lynx, this is their first trip to the finals since 2017.
Both of these teams met in the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup championship, where Minnesota took the win. They also won the regular season series 3-1, but everyone knows what happened in the regular season does not matter.
Offensive Masterclass
The first quarter was all about New York as they got off to a hot start thanks to a 5-0 run. The Lynx answered with their own 5-0 run to tie the game before three consecutive three-pointers by New York pushed the lead to nine.
Head coach Sandy Brondello said before the game that Jonquel Jones is the x-factor in the series because she is a mismatch for the opposing team. Jones had 10 points on 80 FG% in just seven minutes, and two and-1s. She was unstoppable in the paint.
The Liberty were also attacking the offensive glass, one of their major strengths. They had six offensive rebounds (Lynx had five total rebounds), eight points off turnovers, and six assists.
They had 32 first quarter points, which is the most the Lynx have allowed in a quarter this season including the playoffs. New York led by as many as 16 in the quarter, which was the largest deficit they have faced this postseason.
No Lead is Safe
The Liberty turned the ball over on their first two possessions of the second quarter, with the second one turning into two points for the Lynx. But that would be the only thing they could get as their offense was all out of sorts.
New York went on a 9-2 run to increase their lead to 18, which was their largest of the game. But Minnesota’s defense started to pick as they forced four second quarter turnovers and held the Liberty to 27.8 FG%.
The Lynx were able to cut the lead to single digits thanks to a 12-3 run to end the first half. It then became a 20-5 going back to the 5:13 mark in the second quarter and carried over to the third quarter. The defense forced several shot clock violations, and suddenly it was a two point game.
The Lynx had a chance to either tie or take the lead, but they committed back to back turnovers which slowed the momentum. The Liberty were able to increase the lead back to double digits, but Minnesota was not going away.
What Just Happened?
It was a back and forth game to start the fourth quarter before New York made some shots to extend their lead back to 15. Even though they were up big, the game was far from over.
In the last five minutes of the fourth quarter, the Lynx went on a 18-2 run to take their first lead of the game. They slowly cut lead into the lead and with 5.1 seconds left, Courtney Williams was fouled on a three, which she made. She completed the four-point play to give Minnesota the lead.
The Liberty only had five seconds left to get a shot off for the win. With about three seconds left, the ball went out of bounds and the officials called a jump ball. Neither team could challenge the call because they only had a reset timeout.
Williams was then called for a jump ball violation, so possession was awarded to the Liberty. DPOY Napheesa Collier blocked Breanna Stewart’s shot attempt, which left New York with just one second left. They got the offensive board and Stewart missed the shot which would have been the end of the game.
But a foul was called on Collier right before time expired, and it was in the act of shooting. Stewart had a chance to win the game, but went ½ at the line which tied the game. The Lynx used their reset timeout to get a shot off with 0.5 seconds, but Williams missed it which set up overtime.
Clutch Genes
Five more minutes of the Liberty and Lynx going at it was must-see TV. The Lynx went on a 4-0 run to kick things off in OT. They had all the momentum on their side, and New York was on the ropes. They did not score until the 1:38 mark to cut the lead to one.
Williams scored the next five points for the Lynx to put them up four which was their largest lead of the game. But back to back steals by the Liberty led to four points which tied the game 93-93. Minnesota got the ball, and Williams’ shot attempt was blocked by Stewart with the ball going out of bounds.
With 8.1 seconds, Collier got the ball and hit the go-ahead jumper to give her team a two-point lead. New York had enough time to get a shot off to either tie the game or win it. They gave it to Stewart, but she missed it and that was the end of the game.
The Lynx overcame an 18-point deficit, which is tied for the largest comeback in WNBA Finals history. They are also the first team in WNBA postseason history to win a game after trailing by at least 15 points in the final five minutes of regulation.
Courtney Williams led the team with 23 points, five rebounds and five assists. Kayla McBride finished with 22 points and four assists. Napheesa Collier finished with 21 points, eight rebounds, three steals and six blocks. Natiesha Hiedeman finished with 10 points and three rebounds.
Photo Courtesy: @minnesotalynx/X