No. 8-seeded Liberty sweep
top-seeded Lynx 87-71 in quarterfinals, advance to WNBA semifinals
[September 30, 2026]
By DOUG FEINBERG
NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Liberty are peaking at the right time
and were able to complete a historic sweep of the Minnesota Lynx to
advance to the semifinals of the WNBA playoffs.
Jonquel Jones had 21 points and 13 rebounds and the No. 8 seed
Liberty beat the top-seeded Lynx 87-71 in Game 2 of their WNBA
playoff series Tuesday night. New York became the first No. 8 seed
to eliminate a No. 1 seed in the league’s 30-year history.
The WNBA has undergone a number of different playoff formats. And in
many of the formats, it wasn’t possible for those seeds to match up.
However, in 2022 the league changed to the current format in which
the top eight teams play in the quarterfinals.
“It feels good, we understand who we are as a team,” Jones said.
“We're not listening to outside noise, we understand that we can do
a lot of great things. We feel like we can play with anybody and
beat anybody. That’s the mindset we have moving forward. It feels
good to make history. It had to be done for us to advance. It’s nice
to say it’s been accomplished, but we have a lot of work to do."
Breanna Stewart added 21 points and Sabrina Ionescu had 18 for the
Liberty, who await the winner of the Atlanta-Washington series. The
Dream are up 1-0 and play at Washington on Wednesday night. The
semifinals begin Sunday.
A year after losing in the first round to Phoenix after going up 1-0
in that series, New York was determined not to have that happen
again.
The Liberty were up five points after one quarter and led 40-35 with
2:39 left in the half. New York scored nine of the final 11 points
in the second quarter to go up 49-37 at the break.
New York was up 52-39 with 6:26 left in the third when Stewart drove
to the basket and was hit in the face by Olivia Miles as she tried
to block the shot. Stewart was down for a minute as the officials
reviewed the play and upgraded the play to a Flagrant-1 foul.
[to top of second column] |
New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu (20) reacts after scoring a
three-point basket during the first half of Game 2 of a WNBA
basketball first-round playoff series against the Minnesota Lynx,
Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Heather Khalifa)
As Stewart walked off the court, she raised her
hands to the sellout crowd of 17,593, who serenaded her with M-V-P!
chants. Stewart hit both free throws.
Minnesota couldn't get closer than seven points the rest of the way.
“New York is a great basketball team,” said Courtney Williams, who
led Minnesota with 18 points. “You dig a hole for yourself and try
to get out of it. We wanted to go on a run, but they had answers for
everything.”
The Lynx's season ended in disappointment again. The Lynx had the
best regular-season record, but just couldn't put it together
against New York. On Monday, Cheryl Reeve won the league's Coach of
the Year and Miles was a unanimous choice for Rookie of the Year.
Miles struggled in both games against New York. She had five points,
missing seven of her eight shots in 17 minutes, on Tuesday night.
The Liberty's size and ability to protect the rim bothered the
stellar first-year player.
Reeve said she offered encouragement to her star rookie after the
game.
“As I told her. When was the last time a rookie led the first place
team? Never happened before,” Reeve said. “That's what we shared
with her. This hurts for her.”
Napheesa Collier and Kayla McBride each added 14 to for the Lynx.
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