The New York Liberty entered the 2026 WNBA playoffs as the No. 8 seed. Two games later, the league’s No. 1 team was going home.
New York swept the Minnesota Lynx 2-0 in the first round, winning Game 1 by 16 points and Game 2 by the same margin. The result made the Liberty the first No. 8 seed in WNBA history to eliminate a No. 1 seed. [WNBA] [ESPN]
But while the seeding made the result historic, the matchup was considerably closer than a normal No. 1-versus-No. 8 series. New York had already beaten Minnesota twice during the regular season, had won the Commissioner’s Cup and still possessed a championship-caliber core led by Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones and Sabrina Ionescu. [WNBA]
What Happened In The Liberty-Lynx Playoff Series?
The Liberty eliminated Minnesota in two games in the best-of-three first round:
- Game 1: Liberty 91, Lynx 75
- Game 2: Liberty 87, Lynx 71
That meant New York outscored Minnesota 178-146 across the series — a 32-point cumulative margin.
The Liberty did not merely steal a close game and survive another. They won both games convincingly, including Game 1 at Minnesota’s Target Center. [WNBA]
Why Was The Upset Historic?
New York became the first No. 8 seed to eliminate a No. 1 seed in the WNBA’s 30-year history. [NBC Sports]
There is an important qualification to that record. The WNBA has used several postseason formats during its history, and for many years the No. 1 and No. 8 seeds could not meet in a conventional opening-round series. The league adopted the current top-eight playoff structure in 2022. [MPR News/AP]
New York’s Game 1 victory was itself historic: the Liberty became the first No. 8 seed to defeat a No. 1 seed in a WNBA playoff game. It was only the third playoff-game victory by an eighth seed in league history. [Liberty]
How Did Breanna Stewart Take Over Game 1?
The biggest reason New York seized control of the series was Stewart.
She erupted for 34 points, 12 rebounds and six assists in the 91-75 Game 1 victory while shooting 11-for-18 from the field. She also contributed two steals and two blocks. [WNBA]
According to the Liberty, Stewart became the first player in WNBA history to record at least 30 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and two steals in a playoff game. [Liberty]
Minnesota actually led 44-40 at halftime. New York then shot 63 percent from the field in the second half and scored 51 points after halftime. The Liberty eventually broke the game open by outscoring Minnesota 22-8 during a stretch of the fourth quarter. [Liberty]
Why Was New York’s Three-Point Shooting So Important?
Minnesota’s attempts to contain Stewart created opportunities elsewhere.
The Liberty made 13 of 25 three-pointers in Game 1, a 52 percent rate that matched the franchise playoff record for made threes and represented New York’s best postseason three-point percentage in a game with at least 20 attempts. [Liberty]
Leonie Fiebich was particularly important, scoring 16 points and making four of her five attempts from three-point range. Sabrina Ionescu added 13 points. [WNBA]
New York also converted Minnesota’s mistakes into offense, scoring 24 points off 13 Lynx turnovers in Game 1. [Liberty]
How Did Jonquel Jones Change Game 2?
Game 2 demonstrated that Minnesota’s problems went beyond stopping Stewart.
Jones established herself immediately inside and finished with 21 points and 13 rebounds. Stewart scored another 21 points, while Ionescu contributed 18 points and seven assists. [MPR News/AP]
The Liberty jumped ahead 9-1 and never trailed. They closed the second quarter with a 9-2 run to take a 49-37 halftime lead, and Minnesota never got closer than seven points afterward. [CBS Sports] [AP]
New York shot 46.4 percent from the field in Game 2 while holding Minnesota to 38.2 percent. The Liberty also held a 42-40 rebounding advantage. [CBS Sports]
What Happened To Olivia Miles?
One of the biggest differences between Minnesota’s regular-season success and its playoff performance was the production of rookie guard Olivia Miles.
Miles had just 11 points on 3-for-12 shooting with one assist in Game 1. [WNBA]
Things became even more difficult in Game 2. Miles scored five points and made only one of eight field-goal attempts in 17 minutes. New York’s size and rim protection repeatedly complicated her attempts to attack the basket. [MPR News/AP]
It was a striking conclusion to a season in which Miles had just been named the WNBA’s unanimous Rookie of the Year. [AP]
Why Was New York Such A Difficult Matchup For Minnesota?
The seed numbers obscured what had happened when these teams actually played.
Minnesota finished 33-11 and earned the No. 1 seed for the second consecutive season. New York went 26-18 and fell to eighth after losing its final two regular-season games. [WNBA]
But the Liberty had already won the regular-season series 2-1:
- July 3: Liberty 99, Lynx 86
- July 11: Lynx 90, Liberty 85
- September 18: Liberty 93, Lynx 81
New York was one of only two teams to beat Minnesota twice during the 2026 regular season. [WNBA]
The Liberty therefore finished the regular season and playoffs with a combined 4-1 record against the Lynx.
Were The Liberty Really A Typical No. 8 Seed?
No. Their record put them eighth, but their roster and recent accomplishments made them unusually dangerous for that position.
The Liberty won the 2024 WNBA championship by defeating these same Lynx in a five-game Finals. They also won the 2026 Commissioner’s Cup before an inconsistent regular season eventually pushed them down the standings. [WNBA]
They still entered the postseason with Stewart, Jones and Ionescu — three established All-Star-level players with extensive postseason experience.
The series therefore produced a strange combination: historically, it was a monumental 8-over-1 upset; from a matchup perspective, it involved a lower-seeded team that had repeatedly demonstrated it could beat Minnesota.
What Went Wrong For The Lynx?
Minnesota’s problems were spread across both ends of the floor.
The Lynx struggled to contain Stewart in Game 1, committed costly fouls, allowed New York to shoot exceptionally well from three and received a difficult postseason debut from Miles. Napheesa Collier and Natasha Howard both fouled out of the opener. [WNBA]
In Game 2, Minnesota never led. Courtney Williams scored 18 points and Collier had 14, but the Lynx collectively shot only 38.2 percent. [CBS Sports]
Meanwhile, Minnesota had to deal with a different New York star taking control depending on the situation: Stewart dominated Game 1, Jones controlled the interior in Game 2 and Ionescu supplied perimeter scoring and playmaking in the clincher.
How Big Was The Upset?
By seeding, it was unprecedented.
By the actual matchup, however, there were warning signs before the playoffs began. The Liberty had already won two of three regular-season meetings, owned recent championship experience and had demonstrated a much higher ceiling than their No. 8 seed suggested.
The remarkable part was therefore not simply that New York won. It was how decisively it happened.
The Liberty went into Minnesota and won Game 1 by 16. They returned to Brooklyn and won Game 2 by 16. There was no winner-take-all Game 3 and no late Minnesota rally to save the top seed.
The No. 8 Liberty simply swept the No. 1 Lynx out of the playoffs.
Who Do The Liberty Play Next?
New York advanced to the WNBA semifinals and will face the winner of the first-round series between the No. 4 Atlanta Dream and No. 5 Washington Mystics. The semifinals are scheduled to begin October 4. [AP]
Watch Liberty-Lynx Highlights
The WNBA has official video highlights and top plays from New York’s series-clinching victory over Minnesota. [WNBA Video]
