After dominating the league throughout the regular season, the Minnesota Lynx are done.
The New York Liberty earned a second straight victory over the Lynx, this time an 87-71 win at the Barclays Center on Tuesday night, to officially close out their first-round playoff run. This eliminated the top seed from the playoffs and made the Liberty the first No. 8 seed to upset a No. 1 seed in WNBA playoff history.
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The current playoff format, with all eight teams playing in the first round, was not adopted until 2022. But the Liberty were the first No. 8 seed to win a game in the first round of the playoffs, and no No. 8 team has ever won a first-round series, even before facing the top seed.
The Lynx entered the playoffs as the top seed with Rookie of the Year Olivia Miles and Coach of the Year Cheryl Reeve alongside them. They went 33-10 this season and looked poised to make a significant playoff run.
But the Liberty came to the Target Center on Sunday with other plans. Breanna Stewart dropped 34 points in this contest to lead them to a convincing 16 point victory on the road.
Tuesday night was no different. The Liberty led from the jump at home and opened the game on a 15-5 run before taking a 14-point lead into halftime. Although the Lynx responded briefly in the third quarter – they went on a brief 10-2 run to cut the deficit to single digits – Sabrina Ionescu hit a huge 3-pointer just before the end of the period to put them in control.
The Liberty responded each time and ended up going the rest of the way to the 16-point victory. The Lynx, contrary to what they looked like throughout the regular season, were not up to par. Minnesota only led for three minutes and 23 seconds in the two games of this series.
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Courtney Williams led the Lynx with 18 points and seven rebounds in the loss. Napheesa Collier and Kayla McBride added 14 points each.
Jonquel Jones led the Liberty with 21 points, including 14 in the first half, and 13 rebounds in the victory. Stewart had 21 points and Ionescu added 18 points and seven assists.
The Liberty now advances to the semi-finals. They will face either the Atlanta Dream or the Washington Mystics in the next round in a best-of-five series. If they can pull off a series win there, they will earn a third trip to the WNBA Finals in the last four seasons.
The Lynx, however, are returning home. After the season they had, this early exit from the playoffs can only be considered disappointing.
Yahoo Sports Team
The number 1 seed in the general classification breaks down! The New York Liberty swept the Minnesota Lynx in dominant fashion after a 16-point victory in Game 2 on Tuesday night. New York will await either the Dream or the Mystics in the semifinals.
Yahoo Sports Team
Yahoo Sports Team
With the Liberty up 17 with three minutes remaining, Sabrina Ionescu, Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones combined for 56 points.
Yahoo Sports Team
Marine Johannes hits two huge 3s to give Liberty a 16 lead with 6:45 to play.
Ryan Young
Sabrina Ionescu made a huge contested 3-pointer just before the end of the period to cut their lead to 12, and the Liberty regained control.
They are only 10 minutes away from moving forward.
Ryan Young
Well, we’re not done yet. The Lynx cut that score to single digits with a 10-2 run after finally coming alive in the third quarter.
Ryan Young
The start of the second half was slow across the board, which is great for the Liberty.
They’re up 13 now with 6:26 left in the third quarter. Officials are considering a potential upgrade after Breanna Stewart was also shot in the face.
Ryan Young
The Liberty have dominated so far and go into the locker room with a score of 9-2. They are only halfway to eliminating the top seed.
Jonquel Jones leads all scorers with 14 points.
Yahoo Sports Team
Jonquel Jones, have fun! She catches a deep pass from Sabrina Ionescu in transition and has a record 10 points, plus 4 rebounds and 1 block.
Yahoo Sports Team
Olivia Miles finally gets her first points of the game on a 3-point basket two minutes into the second quarter.
Yahoo Sports Team
The Liberty are hungry to close out this series and they got off to a positive start in the first quarter. Jonquel Jones led the way for New York with seven points, and Han Xu added an impactful six coming off the bench late in the game. Liberty’s defense has also managed to contain Rookie of the Year Olivia Miles thus far: she has no points and one turnover. Nia Brodie, who had a big Game 1, leads the Lynx with eight points.
Yahoo Sports Team
And he returns to Vegas for a decisive Game 3!
Cassandra Negley
Cassandra Negley
The crowd feels it. …I’m not so sure. We’ve seen this before in Aces-Fever…
Yahoo Sports Team
Indiana has a seven-point lead with just over a minute to play…
Yahoo Sports Team
Clark commits her sixth foul on a tough play in the paint against A’ja Wilson, and her night is over as the Fever hold a nine-point lead with less than three minutes remaining.
Yahoo Sports Team
Wilson was assessed a technical foul after the fan incident.
Cassandra Negley
A’ja Wilson immediately walked towards the Fever fans in the crowd, yelling at them. Chelsea Gray must be restrained and moved away from the seats behind the basket. A few Fever fans leaned down to protect those nearby in case the situation escalated. The police are escorting an older man and there is a delay.
Cassandra Negley
Aliyah Boston was truly magnificent. This is the type of inner offense that Fever needs from her on a regular basis.
Gn sports
