Liberty Take Game 1 at Target Center
Playing before a full arena at Target Center on Sunday afternoon, the Minnesota Lynx opened their best-of-three playoff series with a 91-75 defeat to the New York Liberty. The result puts the Lynx, who finished the regular season as the WNBA's strongest team, one loss away from the end of their campaign.[S1]
Minnesota held a 44-40 advantage at halftime despite a sluggish beginning. New York then moved ahead 65-60 by the end of the third quarter and steadily widened the gap on the way to the Game 1 victory.[S1]
Breanna Stewart paced all scorers with 34 points and collected 12 rebounds for the Liberty. Sabrina Ionescu contributed 12 points and six assists. For the Lynx, Nia Brodie scored a team-high 16 points, Kayla McBride added 14 points and six assists, and Napheesa Collier was limited to 12 points, five rebounds and three assists.[S1]
What Comes Next for Minnesota
The series now moves to New York for Game 2 on Tuesday night, where a Liberty win would eliminate the Lynx. Should Minnesota win, the teams would return to Minneapolis for a deciding Game 3 on Thursday night.[S1]
Minnesota owns four WNBA championships but has not claimed one since 2017. Last year the Lynx entered the postseason as the No. 1 seed and were knocked out in the semifinals by the Phoenix Mercury.[S1]
