WNBA: Finals rematch loss to Lynx shouldn’t trouble the Liberty

The long-awaited 2024 WNBA Finals rematch finally tipped off on Wednesday, when the defending champion New York Liberty visited the Minnesota Lynx. It was the first of four matchups between the teams.

The home team got a measure of revenge for their five-game championship series defeat, triumphing 100-93. Not only was Napheesa Collier expectedly excellent, finishing with 30 points on nearly 70 percent shooting, along with nine rebounds, but Minnesota also shot lights-out overall, going 15-for-31 (48.4 percent) from 3 as a team. Kayla McBride was responsible for five of those triples, propelling her to a 24-point night.

However, should New York still feel pretty good about their chances if the teams were to meet again in the 2025 WNBA Finals?

The Liberty dropped 93 points on the Lynx’s league-best defense, the second-most points Minnesota has surrendered this season. And they did it without Breanna Stewart. Or Emma Meesseman. Before the game, Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello confirmed that Stewart has a bone bruise in her right knee, with no timetable for her return. Brondello did express confidence that Stewie will be good to go by the playoffs, saying, “I know she’ll be back before then.”

By then, the Liberty should also have a fully-integrated Meesseman, who has reportedly arrived in New York and could suit up for the team as soon as Friday.

While New York needed another sizzling scoring outburst from Sabrina Ionescu—31 points on 55 percent shooting with three 3s—to compete with Minnesota on Wednesday, the contests that matter the most (if they happen) should feature more sources of offense for New York, with Meesseman, in particular, adding new dimensions.

Yes, New York lost the battle, but, even as they left Target Center with a third-straight L, they should have no less confidence in their ability to win the (possible) war.

Way to go Aari and Naz!

Phee and Sab weren’t the only players to deliver big scoring nights on Wednesday. Two players secured new career highs that resulted in key wins for their teams: the Indiana Fever’s Aari McDonald and the Atlanta Dream’s Naz Hillmon.

Against the visiting Phoenix Mercury, McDonald continued to prove that she is more than capable of providing scoring pop from the point guard position in place of the still-sidelined Caitlin Clark (groin). A 3-for-4 effort from behind the arc and 10-for-10 perfection from the foul line spurred McDonald to her career-best 27 points, as the Fever won their third-straight game. The 107-101 win by Indy also sent Phoenix to their fourth loss in their last five games.

The Mercury are now just half a game ahead of the Dream in the standings after Hillmon ensured an Atlanta road victory over the Dallas Wings, 88-85.

Not only did the super sub score a career-high 21 points, but she also hit the game-winning 3 with less than three seconds remaining. That was after she already had scored 12 points in the final frame, giving a Dream team—not only missing Rhyne Howard (knee), but also without Jordin Canada (illness) and Brittney Griner, who was absent due to a double-technical ejection in the third quarter—the closing kick needed to bounce back from their Tuesday night loss to the Golden State Valkyries.