In Game 3 of the 2024 WNBA Finals, the New York Liberty channeled the energy of two of its fellow Big Apple sports brethren – the New York Rangers (who the Liberty used to share Madison Square Garden with) and the New York Mets.
One of the Rangers’ monikers is “No Quit in New York.” In the case of the Mets, “OMG,” a hit Reggaeton canción performed by Jose “Candelita” Iglesias has become a theme for the team.
The Liberty certainly lived up to the Blueshirts’ “No Quit in New York” slogan – and Sabrina Ionescu in the fourth quarter had no problem providing her own “OMG” moment.
That triple put the Liberty ahead for good and sealed an 80-77 victory for New York placing them one win shy of its first-ever WNBA championship.
In order for New York to even be in a position to claim that 80-77 victory, the Liberty had to answer what was an early onslaught from Minnesota. The combination of a cohesive unit plus a sellout crowd at the Target Center gave the Lynx an early edge throughout the first half of the contest.
At one point in the first quarter, the Lynx assumed a lead of 23-9. If the opening minutes were any indication, it appeared that Minnesota would have been the team to go ahead 2-1 in this series.
Instead, Game 3 concluded as essentially a reverse of Game 1 where the Liberty had a huge lead – including one late – only to see it dwindle and eventually evaporate.
Ionescu’s game was the textbook definition of “it is not how one starts but how one finishes.” She overcame first half struggles to come through with – up to this point – the biggest play of her, still, relatively young WNBA career.
The Liberty also eked out the 3-point victory because they threw a healthy dose of Breanna Stewart at the Lynx. Minnesota had few answers for the Syracuse native. Stewie finished with 30 points, 11 rebounds and four rejections in nearly 36 minutes of playing time. In addition, she was a perfect 10 out of 10 from the free throw line.
Three for New York concluded their evenings with 13-point performances – including Ionescu. No. 20 also contributed six assists, five rebounds and was three for eight from deep.
Another for the Liberty who finished with 13 was Jonquel Jones. In addition to the 13, she also hauled in five rebounds and dished out three assists. The two blocks she also contributed helped out as well.
Also with 13 was New York’s star rookie Leonie Fiebich. Her specialty is three-point shooting and Fiebich managed to connect on three of her five attempts from long range. Fiebich also grabbed four rebounds.
Minnesota’s end of the ledger also saw four of its starting five also conclude their evenings with double-digit point totals. One of those was Napheesa Collier who was on the court for all 40 minutes. She concluded Wednesday’s contest by scoring 22 points, hauling in nine rebounds and collecting five steals plus a blocked shots.
Kayla McBride, the Lynx’s resident three-point specialist was five of nine from downtown. All in all, she finished with 19 points.
The Lynx was also the beneficiary of a 14-point performance courtesy of Bridget Carleton. In the 34 minutes of playing time she garnered, she also hauled in four rebounds.
Minnesota also got a boost from the 12 points of Courtney Williams. Along with those 12 were eight assists, five rebounds in addition to a pair of steals.
This series can certainly be seen as advantage New York as of today. After that heartbreaking Game 1, the Liberty have responded with back-to-back victories over a Lynx team that had its number throughout the regular season. At worst, the Liberty have guaranteed that if Minnesota is to claim this year’s WNBA championship, the Lynx will have to get it done on the road at Barclays Center.
In many ways, Game 4 will serve as a gut check for the Lynx just as Game 2 was a gut check for the Liberty after they were on the receiving end of a heartbreaking defeat. Minnesota’s was not as crushing as New York’s was in Game 1 but seeing a double-digit advantage vanish still hurts. All the momentum appears to be on the Liberty’s side but one can expect the Lynx to respond in Game 4 as New York did in Game 2.
