Becky Hammon made it clear after the Game 1 loss in Las Vegas that Tuesday’s game would be a matter of life and death. Technically, the Aces wouldn’t be eliminated with a second loss, but teams are 0-18 in WNBA playoff history when trailing 0-2 in a best-of-five series.

Of course, Las Vegas has not suffered any defeats since Hammon took over as head coach for the 2022 season, so there will be one or two series breaks in the coming days as New York had home-field advantage and took a 2-0 lead with a score of 88-84 -Victory. Sabrina Ionescu led the way with 24 points for the Liberty, and Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones and Courtney Vandersloot also finished in double figures.

As in Game 1, when New York made 16 layups, the Liberty once again had a huge (literally) lead and won the points in the paint 44-24. There were nine lead changes in the first half, but New York ended the second quarter with a 9-0 run and didn’t trail the rest of the way; The Liberty are now 27-0 when leading at halftime this season.

The series now moves to Las Vegas, where the Aces were dominant a year ago but lost twice to the Liberty in 2024. New York is one win away from its sixth WNBA Finals appearance in franchise history.

Sabrina Ionescu is The Closer

After scoring eight points in the fourth quarter of Game 1, Ionescu stepped up with 11 points on Tuesday, along with two assists and zero turnovers. Even though she couldn’t find her rhythm outside the arc, the Liberty guard came to the basket confidently. She was finished a variety of runner and leaner and expertly used the pick-and-roll to draw in two defenders and hit her open teammates.

“Sabrina had a tremendous performance down the stretch,” said coach Sandy Brondello. “She is a superstar who shines in the big moments,” Jones added.

Nothing enlivens the New York faithful like an Ionescu bucket, and she understood her strength as she took her team to task at the crucial time. With Las Vegas cutting the deficit to one, she found Stewart for a layup that got them back within three points and found her way to the rim on the ensuing possession. And when Alysha Clark scored the equalizer, there was Ionescu again, coming off a Jones screen and hitting a hard one-handed shot from the elbow.

SABRINA IONESCU takes New York to the top 🗽

NYL secures a 2-point lead late in the fourth quarter

LVA-NYL Game 2 on ESPN2 | #WNBAPlayoffs presented by @Google pic.twitter.com/HPmho3uvBX

– WNBA (@WNBA) October 2, 2024

Both Jones and Stewart averaged more fourth quarter points than Ionescu during the regular season, but during the playoffs this was their time. The Liberty needed every one of those baskets to hold off the Aces.

The Liberty have the better bench here series

Much was made of New York’s starting lineup change, replacing Vandersloot with Leonie Fiebich to give the Liberty a lean, varied starting lineup that overwhelmed the Aces with its length. But their bench has also outplayed Las Vegas’ reserves in two games.

Vandersloot provided a burst of speed in her minutes, pushing the ball in transition and applying rim pressure to get the Aces rotating. Their cutting of the traps on Ionescu helped create past sales points for the New York point guard. Kayla Thornton also contributed good minutes off the bench. Guarded primarily by Kelsey Plum, Thornton used her height advantage to score easily on duck-ins. The experienced striker also defended her position skillfully and once thrilled the crowd at the Barclays Center with a draw a trip on Plum and bows solemnly. Thornton finished the game with a plus-13 in her 16 minutes, helping keep Betnijah Laney-Hamilton and Fiebich fresh until the final period.

On the other hand, just Tiffany Hayes could achieve a positive effect Las Vegas. Sydney Colson was too busy and Kiah Stokes couldn’t provide an offensive boost earlier have to go the game early with a possible concussion. Meanwhile, Hammon said before the game: “I think we’ll see them.” in relation to Megan Gustafson, the big backup, was on the bench for the second straight game.

New York does just enough on A’ja Wilson

The three-time MVP finished with a box score that would be good enough almost everyone otherwise in the league with 24 points, seven rebounds and four assists. However, freedom is must Be happy to see Wilson below her regular season averages of 27 points and 12 rebounds.

New York held Wilson to four shot attempts in the first half – her lowest total this season – and the Aces superstar wasn’t as aggressive as she needed to be. Although she had four assists to correctly interpret the double, she was also a little respectfully on the circumference. On one possession, she allowed an open 3-pointer, causing a shot clock violation, and often tried to turn the ball over at the top of the key instead of attacking the defense.

“I just make everything difficult for her. And I think I do that really well,” Jones said of guarding Wilson.

In the second half, Wilson got hers, but the Liberty Was mostly able to defend them without sending help. The other Aces scored a total of 26 points on 7 of 23 shots after the break. not enough to complete their comeback in the second half. New York was disciplined even when Wilson had opportunities to attack in space, preventing her teammates from escaping.

Lynx even series vs. Sun

Heading into Tuesday’s game, the home teams were 12-1 in Game 2 of the five-game series after losing the opener. However, the Minnesota Lynx had also lost seven straight home games to the Connecticut Sun, including the last two playoff games, so any outcome was open.

Fortunately for the Lynx – and for fans of long playoff series – after a tough night from the floor in Game 1, the shots were falling for Minnesota. Increasing their 3-point percentage from 25.0 to 42.1 was all the Lynx needed to beat the Sun 77-70 and even the series heading into Connecticut.

“We felt like we lost one on our home court,” Kayla McBride said on the broadcast after the win. “We don’t want to be that team.”

As the only starter to ever play in a WNBA Finals, McBride showed the necessary urgency. She helped limit fellow Notre Dame star Marina Mabrey to 15 points and just two 3-pointers, both of which were Mabrey’s lowest totals of the postseason so far. McBride scored 11 points herself, joining Alanna Smith and Courtney Williams in double figures. The pick-and-roll between Williams and Smith was much more effective on Tuesday as Williams got rolling earlier before help arrived. Both Smith and Myisha Hines-Allen made an impression with their performances and found openings at Rolls and Pops.

Courtney Williams put on a show and led the Lynx with an impressive performance in Game 2 🌟

17 PTS
6-13 FGM
1-1 p.m
5 REB
4 AST#WelcometoW | #WNBAPlayoffs presented by @Google pic.twitter.com/aT1V1KiXAo

– WNBA (@WNBA) October 2, 2024

Napheesa Collier, who came into the series averaging 40 points per game in the playoffs, still hasn’t found her scoring touch despite Alyssa Thomas’ defense. However, she also made a name for herself in all other areas of the box, collecting a team-best 12 rebounds, five assists and four blocks. She played all 40 minutes to keep up with Thomas; Although Thomas’ individual statistics suggest she won the battle, Collier won the war.

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(Photo: David L. Nemec / Getty Images)