Breanna Stewart had two key chances…and failed in Liberty's Game 1 WNBA Finals loss

NEW YORK – For a brief moment, Breanna Stewart placed her hands on her head. Then she slapped their legs, bowed her head and gave a half-hearted high five to a New York Liberty teammate.

Within seconds – 2.6 seconds to be exact – Stewart had the opportunity to even out the roller coaster between the Liberty and the Minnesota Lynx in the opening game of the WNBA Finals. In the final moments of overtime, she drove past Lynx star Napheesa Collier and slotted between Courtney Williams, Bridget Carleton and Alanna Smith. On the left side of the basket, Stewart attempted a layup with his right hand. She later described the look as one of her cleanest ever, but that wasn't true. It didn't even touch the rim and New York lost Game 1 95-93. In the blink of an eye, a historic collapse was cemented.

Stewart is a two-time WNBA MVP, two-time Finals MVP and two-time WNBA champion. If she never played again, she would be a first-ballot member of the Naismith Hall of Fame. But Thursday night's loss won't be part of a Stewart highlight. Although she finished the game with 18 points and nine rebounds – a great game for most – her 6 of 21 shooting is a blemish. Twice the basketball was in her hands at crucial moments and she failed.

“We’re just taking it on the chin,” Stewart said.

Minnesota's overtime win marked the largest comeback (18 points) in WNBA Finals history. Although games don't come down to a single play – especially ones with as many twists and turns as this one – Stewart went to the free throw line with just 0.8 seconds left in regulation and had an opportunity to take back the win in the jaws of defeat.

Her focus didn't waver. But Stewart's second free throw did it.

A career shooter with an 83.6 percent shooting percentage at the foul line, she launched a second attempt that bounced off the back of the rim and then off the front, ricocheting away from the cylinder. She walked back to the New York bench and let out screams that could resonate long into the offseason if the Liberty don't come back in this series.

Breanna Stewart's game-winning free throw sends the game into overtime

At the end of regular time the score is 84-84#WNBAFinals presented by @YouTubeTV pic.twitter.com/O1Cg0MkbNi

– WNBA (@WNBA) October 11, 2024

Credit Collier, this season's Defensive Player of the Year, for suppressing Stewart. The Lynx star finished the game with six blocks and three steals (while also scoring 21 points). Collier and Stewart have known each other since their UConn days and played together for a single season there. Although there was little overlap in Storrs, Stewart certainly knew what to expect when the series began. Collier presented a defender long and agile enough to keep up with Stewart. And against Minnesota's struggling team defense?

“I feel like our keys against Minny are our style of play, our pace, control of the boards – I think that's the biggest factor,” Stewart said. “You know this is a team that's definitely going to get in trouble and try to overwhelm us offensively, but we've just got to be able to sustain that and continue to find the open person.”

But New York struggled to find the open player, especially in key moments.

The anatomy of New York's decline can be traced into two periods. One of those came in the second quarter when the Liberty, which led 41-24 with 5:14 to play in the first half, went cold. They only got three points by halftime. The Liberty lacked physicality, and coach Sandy Brondello said they were outrun, stagnant and didn't get downhill enough.

New York later led by 15 points with 5:20 to play in the fourth quarter. The Liberty scored just three more points in regulation, then didn't score until 1:38 into overtime. By then they were four points behind. “We can’t play to lose,” said defender Sabrina Ionescu, who scored just 8 of 26 goals. She said New York took its foot off the gas and had clock-watching moments.

“We should have won this game,” Leonie Fiebich of the Liberty said. “It’s us against each other.”

In mid-September, Stewart set season highs with 38 points and 18 rebounds against Minnesota and tied her career high with six offensive rebounds. But this game was also a defeat. It was one of three times – including in the Commissioner's Cup – that New York lost to Minnesota before the final.

This fourth defeat will certainly hurt the most. New York became the first team in WNBA postseason history to lose a game in which it was leading by at least 15 points in the final five minutes of regulation. What was 183-0 is now 183-1.

Too often, the basketball remained in the hands of New York players late in the game. Players said they dribbled too much, penetrated too deep into Minnesota's defense on offense and allowed the ball to enter the shot clock late, leading to forced attempts. “They took us out of what we wanted to run,” Brondello said. “Defensively they played better than us. That’s what mattered.”

Courtney Vandersloot, a 14-year veteran, said the loss was the most bizarre game she had ever attended. She said she told her teammates, “When you leave this building, you have to think about moving on and being able to put it here. “We're behind us because we can't just dwell on this loss.”

She told Stewart: “It happened, it will never happen again. So let’s move on and be better in the next game.”

No, ma'am. ❌ pic.twitter.com/rgUh7kiLWG

– Minnesota Lynx (@minnesotalynx) October 11, 2024

New York had talked all season about how it had rebounded from last season's finals loss to the Las Vegas Aces, whom it defeated in this season's semifinals. On Thursday night, a sellout crowd of more than 17,000 people at Barclays Center were silenced and appeared stunned. Many left the arena with their hands on their heads, much like Stewart did when the final buzzer sounded.

Although a new wound was certainly opening, the Liberty said she hoped it wouldn't burn for long.

“I want to take these shots,” Stewart said. “It's important to me to know my teammates and that everyone has trust in me. It's like moving on to the next game and still making sure I'm aggressive at all times on the court. As a player, this is of course very frustrating. But recover for Game 2.”

(Photo by Breanna Stewart: Elsa/Getty Images)