The Minnesota Lynx started strong but couldn’t finish against the New York Liberty.
They lost 80-77 after blowing a 15-point lead, meaning they now need to win two games in a row to earn their fifth WNBA championship. This happened in Game 3 of the Finals, where Sabrina Ionescu hit a last-second shot. Game 4 is scheduled for Friday night.
“There are so many ups and downs, and it takes special mental and physical strength to handle those changes, and here we are,” said Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve. “We’re disappointed. We played well at home and just couldn’t secure the win.”
In the first two games of this best-of-five series, Minnesota had only led New York for about three minutes.
However, they managed to split the first two games and were back home in front of a record crowd of 19,521, which included former point guard Lindsay Whalen, who helped the team win four championships.
This support energized the Lynx, allowing them to start strong, leading by 10 points after the first quarter. They built a 15-point lead in the first half, but that slipped away as Breanna Stewart helped New York come back.
Minnesota made 10 of their 20 shots in the opening quarter but struggled afterward, going 19 for 55 for the rest of the game.
“We definitely got the shots we wanted. They were good shots, but we just didn’t make them, while they did,” said Courtney Williams. “Great players make great plays, and that’s how the game went.”
Now, Minnesota needs to win the last two games. Four teams have managed to win the Finals after being down 2-1. The Lynx were the last team to do this in 2017, which was also the last time they won the championship.
Phoenix is the only team that lost Games 2 and 3 but still went on to win the title.
“I feel like they were making plays at the end of shot clocks, and like Coach said, we were getting good looks,” said Napheesa Collier, who scored 22 points. “We just weren’t executing well on offense, and it’s tough when they are such a strong offensive team.”
Minnesota played the last few minutes without forward Alanna Smith due to back problems.
Reeve didn’t provide any updates on Smith’s condition after the game. She had two points and six rebounds in just under 20 minutes and didn’t play the final 6:06 of the game.
“Give credit to Lan. She did what she could,” Reeve said. “We were plus-20 with her on the floor. Losing her was tough. Our starting five is really strong, and not having her, plus foul trouble, put us in a difficult spot.”
