NY Liberty vs. Minnesota Lynx WNBA Finals Game 4 preview: One more to go
Photo by Pamela Costello/NBAE via Getty Images
It’s been a long, arduous journey for the New York Liberty to make it to this point. Can they finish the story? One more to go. The New York Liberty are on the verge of making history after their dramatic come from behind win against the Minnesota Lynx on Wednesday night. They now lead the WNBA Finals 2-1 and have the chance to not only win their first championship, but bring New York its first basketball championship since the 1970s! Can the Liberty finish the story? We’ll find out tonight.
Where to follow the game
ESPN is the place to be. Tip off is at 8:00 p.m. ET (7 for us currently in Minneapolis!).
Injuries
All clear for the Liberty.
Alanna Smith is dealing with a back injury, but she’ll be out there.
The game
When you have a series as closely contested as this one, the counters to the counters take on even more importance. In Game 1, the Liberty weren’t getting downhill as much and when they did, they would force up heavily contested shots. They’ve gradually cut down on that and have made the Lynx pay for helping off the corners
For the Liberty, the ability to make good decisions, find those pockets to score, and get to the paint will be of the utmost importance. Sabrina Ionescu has made great decisions since Game 1 and has been playing with a poise and determination as she continues to adjust to the excellent Minnesota defense. And oh yeah, THIS!
SABRINA IONESCU pic.twitter.com/66gLQPcVCt— NBA TV (@NBATV) October 17, 2024
Man.
For the Lynx, could playing at a faster tempo help some? In the second half, it took them a lot longer to get into their sets and they found themselves deep in the shot clock at various points in the fourth quarter. Andrew Dukowitz of Zone Coverage has more:
“Minnesota’s lack of scoring was partially due to New York’s good defense. However, it also was a result of the Lynx’s slow movement. Minnesota’s slow movement meant that possessions often resulted in a Lynx player trying to isolate and drive the ball on the Liberty before crossing under the rim and resetting the offense into a set play.
The Lynx created unpredictable offense. However, in a WNBA Finals game, it’s unlikely this tactic would catch the Liberty flat-footed. Instead, it sometimes took away valuable seconds and forced the offense to rush their plays.”
For the Lynx, they’ll need Courtney Williams to dial it up one more time. Court has been one of the brightest stars of this series as her game one heroics and all around fun has made this one of the best championship series of all time. Court has been able to get to her spots for much of the series and the Liberty have worked to counter that by bringing the length of Leonie Fiebich and the all around activity of Betnijah Laney-Hamilton. If the Libs can force Court to take heavily contested jumpers deep in the clock against heavy pressure, mission accomplished.
Throughout the season, the Liberty were at the top of the rebounding ranks while the Lynx have been near the bottom. The rebound disparity was massive in the first two games, but in game three, the Libs only won it by one. Jonquel Jones was a bit disappointed with the rebound total but thinks they can be a bit better on the boards. JJ’s role in this series has been subtle, but massive. She scored five points down the stretch and her ability to draw opposing bigs out to the perimeter is immensely valuable. With Alanna Smith at less than full strength, the Lynx will have to figure out how to manage the frontcourt battle against JJ.
Player to watch: Napheesa Collier
When all else fails, turn to your MVP and trust them to bring it home. That’s gonna be the plan for Cheryl Reeve as she turns to MVPhee one more time. Collier set the postseason scoring record on Wednesday night and has firmly cemented herself as one of the league’s greatest stars
MOST POINTS IN A SINGLE POSTSEASON. pic.twitter.com/gv0VpyBlpR— Minnesota Lynx (@minnesotalynx) October 17, 2024
For Collier, she might have to pitch a complete game tonight with Alanna Smith less than full strength. The Lynx’s small ball lineup with Collier at center was essential in game one, and they’re going to need everything she has left in the tank to force this series back to Brooklyn.
Whenever you watch a great player, you start to get a sense that they’re in the midst of an all time, Pantheon, game. We got that on Wednesday night as Breanna Stewart had a game for the ages as she did literally everything humanly possible on a basketball court
Breanna Stewart is saving the game for New York with these blocks right now. An all-time performance occurring: pic.twitter.com/A8vvqs8PLA— Lucas Kaplan (@LucasKaplan_) October 17, 2024
When your superstar is able to fly around the court on defense and then turn around on offense and bring you back into the game through sheer force of will, it’s a beautiful, beautiful thing. And when your leader is bringing this energy deep into an intense battle
“WE ARE NOT F****** LOSING THIS GAME” STEWIE IS LOCKED IN. #WNBA pic.twitter.com/Lp9Up2zvyD— Tyler DeLuca (@TylerDeLuca) October 17, 2024
It gives you an extra bit of energy to get to the finish line. One more to go.
From the Vault
Sab’s shot might go down as the biggest in Liberty history. Here’s the other one!
More reading: Canis Hoopus, Zone Coverage, Swish Appeal, The Strickland, The Local W, New York Daily News, New York Post, The Athletic. NY Liberty Fan TV, Fansided, Just Women’s Sports, SI All Knicks, Winsidr, Her Hoop Stats, CBS Sports, and The Next
New York Liberty Game Notes - New York Liberty
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