Liberty oust Lynx as first No. 8 seed to beat No. 1 in WNBA playoffs — SkimNews
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- Liberty's Big Three dominated Game 2 to seal the sweep, with Jonquel Jones posting 21 points and 13 rebounds, Breanna Stewart adding 21 points, five rebounds and four assists, and Sabrina Ionescu contributing 18 points and seven assists.
- Minnesota Lynx shot just 38.2% as a team, with Courtney Williams' 18 points requiring 17 shots and Napheesa Collier managing only 14 points on 14 attempts; the Lynx trailed 9-1 from the opening minutes and never led.
- Rookie of the Year Olivia Miles delivered a disastrous playoff debut, totaling 16 points on 20 shots with just two assists and five turnovers across the two games, including a 1-of-7 performance at the rim after shooting 56.7% there during the regular season.
- The Lynx lost both games by 16 points for a minus-32 series margin — the worst ever by a No. 1 seed in a best-of-three series, per Her Hoops Stats — extending a playoff skid that now includes a 2024 Finals loss to these same Liberty, a 2025 semifinal exit, and a first-round elimination.
- Coach of the Year Cheryl Reeve, who earned a record fifth COY award days earlier, struck a nonchalant tone before Game 2 saying she felt no pressure, a stance the article flags alongside Kayla McBride's late-season 'F you' quote as warning signs of a team that backed into the top seed on a 2-4 skid.
- The Liberty went 26-18 — the best winning percentage by a No. 8 seed since the league expanded to eight playoff teams in 2016 — and the seven-game gap between the top and bottom seed was the smallest in that span, underscoring that New York was a preseason title favorite with Stewart, Jones, Ionescu and Leonie Fiebich still intact despite Satou Sabally being limited to 13 games.
- New York advances to face the winner of the Atlanta Dream–Washington Mystics series; the Dream lead 1-0 with Game 2 set for Wednesday in Washington.
Why it matters: Minnesota has now won the most regular-season games of any team since 2024 (97-31) but has just three playoff series wins to show for it, with this first-round exit marking the worst margin ever for a top seed in a best-of-three. For the Liberty, retooling under new coach Chris DeMarco and missing Sabally all season, the upset validates that their core remains championship-caliber as they await the Dream or Mystics.
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