New York Liberty walked into Game 2 of the WNBA Finals with a single message for their opponents: “We’re not done yet.”
Their efforts were backed up both on and off the court with an 80-66 win over the Minnesota Lynx and in front of a massive crowd on Oct. 13.
It’s been a season of breaking records and taking names for Brooklyn’s home team, and Game 2 of the finals set the record for most fans at Barclays Center in franchise history with 18,046 in attendance.
According to a Barclays Center representative, the team sold standing-room-only tickets for the first time.
The victory came after Liberty suffered a heartbreaking loss in Game 1. Though the Liberty led for the first half, with less than five minutes to go and the Lynx down by 15 points, the opposing became the first in WNBA playoffs history to secure a win after trailing by 15 or more points in the final five minutes of regulation play.
That loss didn’t sway Liberty’s grit and determination going into the second match-up.
“It’s the finals,” Jonquel Jones, a Liberty forward, said ahead of Game 2. “We’re not about to quit after one game, especially a game that we were more than capable of winning. It was a game that we really played well for the most part. We’re good. We’ll be back.”
Breanna Stewart went on to lead the New York Liberty to victory on Oct. 13 with 21 points, eight rebounds, five assists, and a block. She set a new Finals record with seven steals — the most in Liberty postseason history — while moving into the top 10 for points scored in Finals history and surpassing Tari Phillips for third on the Liberty’s all-time field goals list.
Betnijah Laney-Hamilton also excelled, scoring a career-high 20 points, including four three-pointers. Sabrina Ionescu contributed 15 points, five assists, and four rebounds, extending her WNBA-record streak of games with a three-pointer to 81.
Brooklyn fans made themselves known after each successful Liberty play with thunderous applause and celebration.
It’s clear Liberty has found its groove, and Brooklyn is here to support its powerful plays all the way to a potential Finals victory.
Liberty will play the next two matches in Minnesota. With the series tied 1-1, both teams need two more wins to win the Finals. If Liberty were to win the next two games, they would claim victory on their opponent’s home court.
“We got our rhythm and momentum back in Game 2,” Stewart said in a statement. “Just kind of picking up things offensively and defensively, bringing them to another level, and knowing that it’s not going to get any easier from here. This is the Finals. It’s only going to get harder, but [we’re] excited for the atmosphere, and no one is cheering for us, and everybody is cheering against us.”
Liberty and Lynx will face off for Game 3 on Wednesday,
Oct. 16 at 8 p.m.
