New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart and Minnesota Lynx guard Kayla McBride get tied up at the 8:21 mark of the 1st quarter in Wednesday’s WNBA Finals Game 3 at Target Center. McBride’s Lynx won Game 4 on Friday. Photo by Abe Booker III/Sportspage Magazine
MINNEAPOLIS – For the third time in four games during the 2024 WNBA Finals, the game came down to the final possession, when Minnesota Lynx forward Bridget Carleton made her two free throws with 2.0 seconds to lift the Lynx over the New York Liberty 82-80 in front of a 19,210-strong sellout crowd at Target Center Friday night. The Lynx win ties the series 2-2, which now reverts to Brooklyn for a decisive Game 5 on Sunday night before a champion is crowned.
The game was played within an 11-point margin with New York’s largest lead being six, while Minnesota was able to go up by as many as five points throughout the contest, which featured 13 ties and 14 lead changes.
The Lynx jumped out to an early 4-0 lead with a jump shot from guard Courtney Williams and a layup from forward Napheesa Collier. Liberty forward Betnijah Laney-Hamilton answered with a three-pointer to keep the score close.
Lynx center Alanna Smith and Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu traded layups. Minnesota guard Kayla McBride and New York center Jonquel Jones exchanged three-pointers. Collier and Liberty forward Kayla Thornton canceled each other out from behind the three-point line. McBride made her second three-pointer of the game to tie the score at 15-15 with 3:01 remaining in the opening quarter. It was the first tie of the game.
Referee Eric Brewton issued a Delay of Game warning to New York after Laney-Hamilton made a layup to break the tie. Then McBride made a layup and a free throw after getting fouled by Liberty guard Courtney Vandersloot, which put Minnesota up by a point. New York center Nyara Sabally put back a miss by forward Breanna Stewart to give the Liberty the one-point lead.
Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier tosses the ball to an official during Wednesday’s WNBA Finals Game 3. She finished with 14 points on Friday’s Game 4 to give her a record 263 points in a WNBA postseason, surpassing Diana Taurasi’s 245 points in the 2009 season. Photo by Abe Booker III/Sportspage Magazine
Collier made a three-pointer and suddenly the Lynx were on top by two, but the game was tied again 17 seconds later when Laney-Hamilton made a jump shot. After the inbounds pass, Laney-Hamilton fouled McBride while in the act of shooting a three-pointer. McBride converted two of the three free throws to give the Lynx the two-point advantage, but New York guard Leonie Fiebich made a 10-foot floating shot to tie it back up. It was 23-23 at the end of the first quarter.
McBride scored 11 points for the Lynx in the opening quarter while Laney-Hamilton and Jones each scored seven points for New York. Both teams committed four turnovers in the opening quarter.
The second quarter featured few turnovers (three each), a higher quality shot selection, and more ball movement, everything that you would expect in a championship-caliber game.
The teams continued to trade baskets but after a Laney-Hamilton three-pointer that was not answered, the Liberty maintained a one-point lead throughout a good portion of the quarter. After an Ionescu fast break layup followed by a Fiebich jump shot, the Liberty led 39-34 with 5:16 left until halftime, the largest lead of the game so far.
Minnesota answered with a jump shot from Collier. Williams then stole a pass from Ionescu and converted it into a fast break midrange jump shot to pull the Lynx back within one point. Stewart made a layup to extend the Liberty lead to three points, before Minnesota forward Cecilia Zandalasini drained a three-pointer for the 41-41 tie with 1:58 left in the half.
Sabally made two free throws after getting fouled by Collier. Then Williams made a jump shot and was fouled by Stewart for the “and one.” The Williams free throw put Minnesota up by one point. Then McBride drove the lane for a layup and was fouled by Stewart, her third of the game. McBride’s free throw made it 47-43 in favor of Minnesota, but Fiebich scored a transition layup before the Lynx got back on defense. Ionescu fouled Zandalasini with 4.2 seconds left, but the Lynx forward missed both free throws.
New York Liberty guard Leonie Fiebich passes to a teammate while Minnesota Lynx forward Bridget Carleton defends during Wednesday’s WNBA Finals Game 3 at Target Center. Fiebich and the Liberty fell short of winning the championship during Game 4 on Friday. Photo by Abe Booker III/Sportspage Magazine
Minnesota went into the locker room with the 47-45 halftime lead, but the officials wanted a review of the Zandalasini three-pointer at the 1:58 mark to determine if she stepped on the three-point line. They ruled it a two-point shot, making it a 46-45 halftime score instead.
Courtney Williams scored 11 points for Minnesota during the second quarter while Leonie Fiebich added seven points for New York. Both teams shot above 50 percent in the quarter.
The first two quarters were about trading baskets. The beginning of the third quarter felt like it was going to be more of the same. Smith and Jones traded three-point shots. Carleton and Stewart each made layups. Then Minnesota took a five-point lead on a layup from Williams and two free throws after guard Natisha Hiedeman was fouled by Laney-Hamilton. The short 4-0 burst made the score 55-50 in favor of Minnesota with 6:05 on the clock.
New York responded with two three-pointers from Jones with a layup and free throw by Laney-Hamilton sandwiched in, followed by a jump shot by Stewart. The Liberty jumped out to a 61-55 lead on the 11-0 run.
The six point lead would prove to be the largest lead of the game and it would only last about a minute. Jones made a three-pointer. Fiebich made a layup and a free throw. Jones hit another three-pointer. Stewart made a shot. In two minutes of play, New York went on an 11-0 run forcing Minnesota to call a timeout to regroup. It was 61-55, the largest Liberty lead of the night, with 4:06 left in the third quarter.
The Lynx went on another run with a layup from Smith, and a free throw by Collier after she was fouled by Stewart, her fourth foul of the game. Collier missed her second free throw. Smith then hit a three-pointer to tie the game at 61-61 with 2:34 left in the third when New York called a timeout. The Lynx were on a 6-0 run.
Minnesota Lynx forward Courtney Williams scored 15 points and dished seven assists during Friday’s WNBA Finals Game 4 at Target Center. File photo by Abe Booker III/Sportspage Magazine
A Vandersloot layup gave the Liberty the two-point lead. Collier got one of those points back when she was fouled by Sabally but only converted the first free throw. New York rebounded the errant free shot but Minnesota forward Dorka Juhasz tied up Sabally for a jump ball.
The Liberty won the jump but Hiedeman stole a Vandersloot pass, dished to Carleton who was fouled by Fiebich while attempting a layup. Carleton made both free throws to put Minnesota up 64-63.
As Ionescu was taking the ball up the court, Juhasz forced her to lose the ball out of bounds for the 12th New York turnover with 1.3 seconds on the clock. Hiedeman attempted a long three-pointer as time expired but missed the basket. Minnesota led 64-63 at the end of the third quarter as both teams scored exactly 18 points.
The addition of Zandalasini and Juhasz off the bench seemed to provide a needed spark for Minnesota. Zandalasini made a turnaround jump shot to start the fourth quarter, extending the Lynx lead to three points in the process.
Juhasz rebounded the ball after Stewart missed a layup, but both forwards tied up for the jump ball. Stewart won the tip, but Jones was called for an offensive foul. Juhasz then scored on a driving layup as the crowd inside of Target Center began to get loud. The Lynx led 68-63 with 8:36 left on the clock. Stewart quieted the crowd seconds later with a layup and a foul on Juhasz.
New York Liberty guard Breanna Stewart shoots past the outstreched arms of Minnesota Lynx center Alanna Smith (8) and guard Kayla McBride (21) during Wednesday’s WNBA Finals Game 3. Stewart had 11 points and 11 rebounds during Friday’s Game 4. Photo by Abe Booker III/Sportspage Magazine
Zandalasini made a layup to extend the Minnesota lead to four, but two free throws from Fiebich and a layup by Ionescu tied the score 70-70. Fiebich then made an open layup to give New York the brief two-point lead, but McBride answered with a jump shot to tie it back up at 72-72 with 5:32 left in regulation.
Stewart and Collier tangled when Stewart missed a pull up jump shot that Collier rebounded. The officials gave Minnesota possession, which prompted New York to challenge the call. After a lengthy replay, the ruling was that the challenge was unsuccessful. Collier then missed the layup.
Smith made a layup to give Minnesota the two-point lead, which was followed by a three-pointer from Carleton. Fiebich and McBride exchanged three’s, then Ionescu scored on a layup to make the score 80-77 in favor of Minnesota.
When the clock ticked down to 1:30, the Target Center crowd erupted in cheers in anticipation of a home team win. Then Jones made a layup and was fouled by Collier. After the free throw, the game was tied 80-80 with 1:10 left in regulation, prompting Minnesota to call timeout.
McBride attempted a layup but missed. It was rebounded by Fiebich. Jones then missed a turnaround fadeaway shot. Stewart rebounded and tried to tip it in but missed. Stewart rebounded her own miss, passed to Ionescu who missed her shot. The shot clock expired for the Liberty’s 16th turnover of the game with 18.3 seconds left on the clock, giving Minnesota one last chance to score. Minnesota called a full timeout to set up the play.
On the inbounds, Williams dribbled at the top of the key until there were nine seconds left on the clock. She drove towards the lane and put up a shot with 4.1 seconds left. It missed. Carleton was in position for the rebound and the put back. She missed the shot but was fouled by Ionescu, New York’s Game 3 heroine, with 2.0 seconds left. Carleton made both free throws to give the Lynx the 82-80 lead.
After a New York timeout, Ionescu took the inbounds pass from Fiebich and heaved up a 35-foot three-point shot as time expired. It went wide to the right and Target Center erupted in cheers as the Lynx force a decisive Game 5.
Minnesota Lynx forward Bridget Carleton attempts a reverse layup past New York Liberty center Jonquel Jones during Wednesday night’s WNBA Finals Game 3 at Target Center. Carleton’s two free throws after getting fouled while attempting to tip in a Courtney Williams missed shot with 2 seconds remaining was the difference maker in Friday’s Game 4. Photo by Abe Booker III/Sportspage Magazine
Minnesota went 29-for-65 (44.6 percent) from the field; 9-for-23 (39.1 percent) from three-point range; and 15-for-20 (75.0 percent) from the free throw line. They committed 13 turnovers that led to 10 Liberty points.
“I think the players, the players deserve all the credit for the show that we are being treated to. I thought both teams played well. It was a good game. Obviously both teams, things you can point to – you wish you made a layup or you wish you didn’t do this or that. That’s the way a game always is,” said Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve. “I’m looking forward to seeing what the ratings are for this one.”
New York went 31-for-71 (43.7 percent) from the field; 9-for-23 (39.1 percent) from three-point range; and 9-for-9 (100.0 percent) from the charity stripe. They turned the ball over 16 times for 19 Lynx points.
“Minnesota did what they needed to do here to tie it up, and now we go back home. We love playing in front of our home crowd. So it will definitely be another sellout, and it will definitely be loud. And we have to bring our ‘A’ game,” said Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello. “I have a lot of respect for Minnesota, don’t get me wrong. This is a really tough team, really tough team. They play well. They compete. So we’ve got one more game, and we’re going to win on our home court.
New York held a 38-26 lead in points-in-the-paint and 12-11 edge in fast break points. Minnesota had the 5-4 advantage in second chance points. There were 13 ties and 14 lead changes.
“I think that what I’m just thrilled about is that this group gets to experience the Game 5,” said Reeve who is in her seventh WNBA Finals as a head coach. “It’s beyond words how we feel about this team, and we just so wanted them to be in the Finals No. 1, and two, put themselves in a position to win a championship, and we’ve done just that.”
The Lynx were led by 19 points from Kayla McBride; 15 from Courtney Williams; 14 by Napheesa Collier; and 12 each from Bridget Carleton and Alanna Smith. Collier pulled down nine rebounds to lead Minnesota while Williams led the effort with seven assists on the night.
“I wanted to come out and enjoy the moment and be as aggressive as possible. When you’re playing for your season, after the last game you sit with everything, and you erase it and you want to leave all those internal feelings and put it out there and embrace the crowd,” said McBride. “I just wanted to be out there with my teammates and give it everything we had. Shots go in, they don’t go in, whatever. There are always things you can fix. But I was just excited to be out there and compete again after the last game. Shots were falling. That’s always a good thing.”
The Liberty was led by 21 points from Jonquel Jones; Leonie Fiebich pitched in with 19; Breanna Stewart scored 11 points; and Betnijah Laney-Hamilton and Sabrina Ionescu each scored 10 points.
“It’s a close-out game. Their backs are against the wall and we are trying to win. 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,” said Jones.
The 2024 WNBA Championship game will be held at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center on Sunday beginning at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT. The best-of-five series is tied 2-2.
