The New York Liberty became the first No. 8 seed to eliminate a No. 1 seed in WNBA history on Tuesday night, completing a 2-0 first-round sweep with an 87-71 victory over the Minnesota Lynx at the Barclays Center.
Jonquel Jones led New York with 21 points and 13 rebounds, Breanna Stewart added 21 points and Sabrina Ionescu chipped in 18 as the Liberty became the first team to book a place in the semifinals. Courtney Williams scored 18 points for Minnesota and Napheesa Collier had 14, while rookie of the year Olivia Miles was held to five points.
It was a sweep built on control from the opening tip. New York jumped to an early double-digit lead and never let go, ending a series in which the Lynx led for just three minutes and 23 seconds combined. Minnesota's defeat means the franchise's 2026 season ended the way its last two campaigns did: with a painful playoff exit. The Lynx had the best record in the regular season, and on Monday head coach Cheryl Reeve was named coach of the year while Miles was named the unanimous rookie of the year.
The Liberty's run had been far from certain. New York stumbled to a 13-12 start and settled for the eighth and final playoff berth, but first-year head coach Chris DeMarco steadied the ship. Stewart set the tone in Game 1 with 34 points and 12 rebounds in a 91-75 win at the Target Center, and the Liberty's big three of Stewart, Jones and Ionescu took over the series-clinching game.
In Indianapolis, the Indiana Fever kept their postseason alive with a 99-89 victory over the defending champion Las Vegas Aces to even their first-round series at 1-1. Caitlin Clark was the story: the All-Star guard scored 27 points and handed out 15 assists, becoming the first player in league history to post a points-assists double-double in the first half of a playoff game after going into the break with 14 points and 11 assists. Kelsey Mitchell added 26 points and Aliyah Boston scored 22. Clark fouled out with 2:45 remaining and Indiana leading 92-83, but the Fever held on. Jackie Young led Las Vegas with 31 points, while A'ja Wilson finished with 22 points and nine rebounds. Game 3 is set for Thursday in Las Vegas.
Sources
https://www.tsn.ca/wnba/article/how-the-liberty-swept-the-lynx-and-the-fever-stayed-alive-n1-50060522/ https://www.foxsports.com/articles/wnba/caitlin-clark-kelsey-mitchell-post-big-games-to-help-fever-even-series-with-9989-win-over-aces
