Sabrina Ionescu’s stunner puts the Liberty on the cusp of the WNBA title

MINNEAPOLIS - As Sabrina Ionescu sat on the bench during a timeout with just seconds left in Game 3 of the WNBA Finals, New York Liberty Coach Sandy Brondello looked her in the eye and told her she would be taking the final shot. After the No. 1 draft pick in 2020 hit what she called “the biggest shot of my career,” she had to watch it again in the locker room to see what had happened.

With the clock dwindling and the score tied at 77, Ionescu sized up defender Kayla McBride, gave a slight hesitation, then stepped back and rose up from just inside the center-court logo with a hand in her face - 28 feet from the rim - and buried a three-pointer to give New York the lead with one second remaining. Minnesota couldn’t get a shot off on its final possession, leaving the 19,521 in attendance - the largest crowd in Lynx history - stunned and staggering toward the doors as the Liberty claimed an 80-77 victory Wednesday night at Target Center.

“I’ve practiced that shot a thousand times,” Ionescu said. “In my head. On the court. And I feel like that’s just something that, as athletes, you put yourself in that position to want to be able to make a shot. ... I didn’t realize how far out I was.”

New York, which erased a 15-point deficit for its second consecutive victory, is a win away from its first WNBA title. Its first chance arrives in Game 4 here Friday night.

This is the first series in WNBA Finals history to feature multiple 15-point comebacks; Minnesota erased an 18-point deficit to win Game 1 in overtime before New York took Game 2.

Ionescu hit the game-winner, but fellow Liberty star Breanna Stewart led the 15-point rally.

Stewart knew there was more out there for her after a pair of good-but-not-great offensive games to start the series. Ghosts of greatness loomed overhead as the two-time MVP stood on the Target Center floor hours before Wednesday’s game.

In the rafters, white banners with blue and green trim were reminders of one of the league’s most prolific dynasties - they represented the championships won by the Lynx in 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2017. Alongside those were the numbers of the biggest pieces of those teams - Maya Moore, Lindsay Whalen, Rebekkah Brunson, Seimone Augustus and Sylvia Fowles.

Stewart’s Liberty remains without a WNBA title, and she had yet to have a breakout performance in this series. That last part changed Wednesday: She had 30 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks to help the Liberty rally.

“I think that we were all kind of just waiting for our moment,” Stewart said. “Waiting for the script to flip a little bit. They punched us in the face in the first quarter, and we continued to wear them down. We knew that our pace was something that made them tired. For me, it was just kind of like, I was motivated. I was mad. And I liked my matchups that I had.”

Before its stars took over in the fourth quarter, the Liberty had trailed since the first two minutes of the game. In the final period, Stewart seemed unstoppable - she followed a turnaround fadeaway with a three-pointer and a three-point play to tie the score at 69. Not long after, Jonquel Jones knocked down her only three-pointer of the game before adding a layup off a pretty pass from Ionescu, who had been fairly quiet. She didn’t stay that way - she added a three of her own to give New York a 77-73 lead with less than a minute left.

A Bridget Carleton layup and two free throws by Napheesa Collier - sandwiched around an Ionescu three-point attempt that nearly went down - tied the score at 77 for Minnesota and set up Ionescu’s heroics.

“It’s not like a Hail Mary, hope this goes in,” Ionescu said of the game-winner. “It’s like, once I got it off, I was like, yeah, this is in.”

At one point in the fourth quarter, Stewart was captured on the sideline shouting, “We are not f---ing losing this game.”

“Just, I could feel it,” Stewart said. “You could feel the momentum was shifting to our side.”

Collier paced the Lynx with 22 points and nine rebounds, and has now passed Diana Taurasi (2009) for the most points scored in a single postseason. McBride added 19 points, Carleton posted 14, and Courtney Williams finished with 12 points and eight assists.

As Stewart had her best offensive game of the series, Ionescu, Jones and Leonie Fiebich each added 13 points for New York.

“It’s pretty special,” Brondellos said. “It was never in doubt. Obviously Stewie got us back in there, willed us in there, but I thought the right time, this is Sabrina. She just made a big shot. She’s a great shooter and she just needed a little bit of separation.

“What I love about her is that she backs herself. Not everyone can take those big shots and make them. She can. So I trust her.”

For five days, the Lynx had to answer questions about slow starts after they were punched in the mouth to open Games 1 and 2. Both times they trailed by double digits while giving up 30-plus points in the opening 10 minutes. They were sick of talking about it.

On Wednesday, they did something about it, opening up a 26-11 lead while swarming on defense and turning New York turnovers into points. When the quarter ended, the Lynx had 14 points off eight Liberty turnovers and led 28-18.

But, as Minnesota did in the first two games, New York responded in the second quarter. The Liberty cut down on its turnovers, and its own defense picked up. The Lynx still led 43-35 at halftime.

“Our defense gave us a chance to win the game, period,” Lynx Coach Cheryl Reeve said. “And our offense has got to help our defense.

“They’re a good defensive team ... but it felt like we had some good opportunities.”

Stewart took over in the second half, and a wild sequence at the end of the third quarter put New York within striking distance. Minnesota’s Williams grabbed a rebound but fell to give the ball back to the Liberty. Ionescu promptly buried a three-pointer, and Jones came flying in from nowhere on the other end for a block before Stewart knocked down a pair of free throws. New York got another defensive stop before Stewart completed a three-point play with 19.5 seconds remaining. That cut Minnesota’s lead to 62-61.

Lynx starting forward Alanna Smith was limited to just under 20 minutes of court time due to foul trouble and a back injury that decimated her minutes. Her absence was felt and Reeve said that they need their starters on the floor.

For Minnesota, the stakes are now as high as they can get: The team needs back-to-back wins to claim a record fifth title. Another loss would send the Lynx home ringless - and would let New York finally stand atop the WNBA.

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All-WNBA teams

The league announced its all-WNBA teams Wednesday. Stewart, Collier, A’ja Wilson (Las Vegas), Alyssa Thomas (Connecticut) and Caitlin Clark (Indiana) were named to the first team. Willson and Collier were both unanimous selections. Ionescu, Jones, Kahleah Copper (Phoenix), Nneka Ogwumike (Seattle) and Arike Ogunbowale (Dallas) were named to the second team.

“That was just a great all-WNBA second-team performance, that’s it,” Ionescu said with a smirk.