The New York Liberty (2-0) completed a sweep of the Minnesota Lynx (0-2) with an 87-71 win in Game 2 of their first-round matchup in front of a raucous, sold-out crowd of more than 17,000 at Barclays Center. With the win, the Liberty became the first No. 8 seed in WNBA history to eliminate a No. 1 seed in a playoff series.
The team brought back the dominant fourth-quarter energy from Game 1, where they outscored the home team 26-15 at the Target Center in Minneapolis.The Lynx showed signs of life to end the quarter trailing 26-21, but the Liberty had let the visitors know from the opening tap that they were pushing for a sweep.
In the second quarter, the Liberty opened up a double-digit lead and dominated in all phases. Spearheaded by their tenacious defense, which held the visitors to less than 24 percent shooting from the field (5-21), the Liberty out-rebounded the Lynx 13-6 and outscored them 12-4 in the paint.
The Liberty led 49-37 at the half, and though the Lynx nearly played the Liberty even in the second half, 34-38, they could not overcome the early deficit or the well-balanced Liberty attack.
Jonquel Jones led the way with 21 points and 13 rebounds, along with solid post play on defense. Breanna Stewart also scored 21 points along with 5 rebounds and 4 assists, playing the full 40 minutes.
Sabrina Ionescu scored 18 points, going 4-10 from the 3-point line and was the emotional spark, urging on the home crowd after hitting deep jump shots.
The Liberty kept two-time MVP runner-up Naphesa Collier under wraps, limiting the All-WNBA player to 14 points and 7 rebounds on 6-14 shooting.
Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve kept unanimous Rookie of the Year winner Olivia Miles glued to the bench for the rest of the game after her personal foul on Breanna Stewart was upgraded to a Flagrant 1 foul at the 6:36 mark of the third quarter.
Minnesota had the best record in the WNBA this season, going 33-11 and securing the overall No. 1 seed, but they stumbled down the closing stretch. The Lynx started the season with a record of 24-6, but for the months of August and September, they had a far more pedestrian 8-5 record, including 1-2 in September, after the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup break.
The Lynx peaked too early, while the Liberty are hitting their stride at the right time, going 8-3 in August and 2-2 in September, with the final game of the season, a loss to the Atlanta Dream, being a rest/load management game.
Next, the Liberty will play the winner of the Atlanta Dream vs. Washington Mystics series, which Atlanta currently leads 1-0. The semi-final round of the WNBA Playoffs begins Oct. 4, with the Liberty opening on the road.
