With their season on the line, the Minnesota Lynx managed to avoid elimination and set up a crucial Game 5 of the WNBA Finals.
Bridget Carleton made two free throws with just 2 seconds remaining, and the Lynx defeated the New York Liberty 82-80 on Friday night. The two teams will face off again on Sunday night in New York for the first Game 5 of the Finals since 2019, when Washington beat Connecticut.
“Last 40 minutes of the season, it could be anywhere, really, it doesn’t matter. We’re going to be out there together going to war and I’m pumped,” said Kayla McBride, who led the Lynx with 19 points.
Courtney Williams contributed 15 points for Minnesota, helping to force Liberty stars Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu into tough shooting performances. Ionescu’s last-second shot missed the rim entirely.
“I think we’re excited,” Napheesa Collier said. “It’s a Game 5 of the Finals. We have to go out and execute.” Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve is experienced with winner-take-all games. She coached Minnesota in three straight from 2015 to 2017, winning two of them.
“I don’t think about the other ones,” Reeve said. “I feel very blessed in my career to have a chance to be part of so many. I haven’t won them all. … What I’m thrilled about is that this group gets to experience the Game 5.”
Unlike the first three games of the series, where one team built a double-digit lead, this game was close throughout. There were 14 lead changes and 13 ties, with neither team leading by more than six points.
“It’s a close-out game. Their backs are against the wall and we are trying to win,” said Jonquel Jones, who scored 21 points for New York. “It was going to be that type of game tonight where we are both trying to claw and both teams are trying to figure out whatever to do to get over the hump.”
With the game tied at 80 with 18 seconds left, Williams dribbled to run down the clock and missed a jumper. Carleton grabbed the rebound in the lane and was fouled by Ionescu.
“She got the shot off and missed it perfectly for me,” Carleton said. “We talked about it after. She wanted to get it high and off the rim.”
The 27-year-old Canadian calmly sank both free throws, while Ionescu couldn’t repeat her dramatic Game 3 moment when she made a long shot with 1 second left to give the Liberty a 2-1 lead in the series.
“I was pretty confident. I’m a confident free-throw shooter,” Carleton said. Leonie Fiebich scored 19 points for New York. Stewart, who had 30 points in Game 3, scored 11 points on 5-of-20 shooting, while Ionescu shot 5 of 16 and scored 10 points.
Minnesota is just one win away from a record fifth WNBA title, which would put them ahead of the Houston Comets and Seattle Storm. The Liberty are seeking their first title and have lost in the Finals five times.
They were one of the original eight franchises when the league started in 1997 and are the only one from that group that hasn’t won a championship.
New York lost to Las Vegas in last season’s Finals. Friday night marked one year since the Aces clinched the series in Game 4.
The Lynx made it to the Finals for the first time since 2017 when they won their last of four championships in seven years.
Minnesota took a 77-72 lead with 3:14 left thanks to Carleton’s 3-pointer, but New York responded by scoring eight of the next 11 points, including a three-point play by Jones that tied the game at 80 with 1:10 left.
Both teams had chances before Carleton’s free throws. McBride missed a layup with 56 seconds remaining, but the Lynx forced a shot-clock violation when Stewart’s shot in the lane missed with 18 seconds left.
“We wanted to get it done tonight. But like (coach) Sandy (Brondello) said, our fans are like no other, and to be able to go into our environment on Sunday, knowing they have our backs,” Stewart said.
“So whenever there are tough situations, whenever we’re fighting through all of this adversity, we know we have the crowd behind us. That’s just going to continue to motivate us. Yeah, can’t wait for Sunday.”
