The Minnesota Lynx may have been the best team in the WNBA during the regular season but they were absolutely blitzed by the New York Liberty in Game 1 of the first-round series. New York came away with a 16-point win, and held Minnesota to just 75 points, their second-lowest scoring output of the season.
The Liberty were led by Breanna Stewart, who put up a vintage, throw-back performance with 34 points, 12 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks, shooting 11-of-18 from the field. The Liberty dominated the game in almost every fashion, coming away with the edge in rebounds, points in the paint, fastbreak points, second-chance points and points off turnovers.
The biggest issue for the Lynx was the struggles of Olivia Miles, the newly crowned Rookie of the Year and their offensive engine all season. She finished the game with 11 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assists and 4 turnovers, shooting 3-of-12 from the field. The Liberty gave her fits during the regular season as well, and she's now shooting just 32 percent from the field and 28 percent from beyond the arc with 15 assists to 13 turnovers across four matchups. If the Lynx are going to hold off the Liberty's upset bid, they're going to need a lot more from Miles, plus big performances from Napheesa Collier, Natasha Howard, Kayla McBride and more.
Score
Live game tracker and play-by-play
Box score: Lynx vs. Liberty player stats and team stats
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