MINNEAPOLIS — With their season on the line, the Minnesota Lynx did just enough to stave off elimination and force a decisive Game 5 of the WNBA Finals.
Bridget Carleton made two free throws with 2.0 seconds on the clock, and the second-seeded Lynx beat the top-seeded New York Liberty 82-80 on Friday night at the Target Center, setting up a winner-take-all showdown Sunday night in New York.
The matchup at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center will mark the first Game 5 of the WNBA’s title series since 2019, when the Washington Mystics topped the Connecticut Sun. This year’s 2-2 series deadlock comes after a split in each city, but the Liberty will try to make their home-court advantage count in the return to New York.
“Last 40 minutes of the season could be anywhere; we’re going to be out there going to war, and I’m pumped,” said Kayla McBride, who led the Lynx with 19 points.
Courtney Williams added 15 points for Minnesota, which forced Liberty stars Sabrina Ionescu and Breanna Stewart into poor shooting nights. Ionescu’s heave at the buzzer didn’t hit the rim.