MINNEAPOLIS — Brianna Stewart continues to say she needs to make up for her failure in last year's Finals. In last year's finals, he made 3 of 17 shots and was unable to make the final shot in the decisive fourth game against the Aces.
Ahead of Game 3 against the Lynx, she said she still has more to figure out in her offensive game after scoring 18 points in the first two games of the WNBA Finals and 21 points later.
Wednesday's game at Target Center featured 30 points and 11 rebounds, 22 of which came in the second half, as Liberty cruised to an 80-77 come-from-behind victory over the Lynx. , one win away from their first WNBA title.
“I think we were all just waiting for that moment, waiting for the script to flip a little bit,” Stewart later said. “[The Lynx] He said he expected the punches to come in the first five minutes. They punched us in the face in the first quarter and we continued to wear them down. … For me, it was like I was motivated, I was pissed, I liked my matchup, and I was really attacking to make sure we could get this back to where we needed to be. to play a baseball game. ”
The third-quarter comeback was fueled by Stewart, who scored 14 of Liberty's 26 points in the frame.
She consistently got to the rim and called the whistle, eventually drawing a foul from Lynx guard Courtney Williams for a 3-point play to make it 62-61 going into the final quarter.
Stewart, who was announced as a sixth-time All-WNBA First Team selection Wednesday afternoon, outplayed former UW teammate Napheesa Collier in the paint, collecting 11 rebounds and four blocks to Collier's nine rebounds and one block. Recorded.
One of Stewart's blocks came against Collier, who was named the 2024 Defensive Player of the Year.
The two-time MVP scored just eight points in the first half after Liberty trailed until the fourth quarter. It was my first time in this final series.
The lead was up to 15 points, but this was mainly due to 11 turnovers that allowed the Lynx to score 14 points in the first half.
“We can't win this game without Stewie,” said Sabrina Ionescu, who scored 13 points and hit the game-winning 3-point dagger from 8 feet in the final minute. “So all she could do was just keep chipping away at it. …Yeah, there’s nothing to say. [my] The shot was great, but that doesn't take away from what she was able to do for us tonight and how she was able to get us back in the game. ”
