Antonia Delaere and the Minnesota Lynx suffered a historic 87-71 defeat to the New York Liberty on Tuesday, marking the first time in WNBA history that an eighth-seeded team has eliminated a top-seeded franchise in the playoffs.
New York Secures Series Sweep in New York
The New York Liberty completed a dominant two-game sweep of the top-seeded Minnesota Lynx with an 87-71 victory in Game 2 of their opening-round playoff series, according to reporting from bebasket.be. New York previously took Game 1 by a score of 91-75 in Minnesota. Playing on their home floor, the 2024 champions seized control early, building a 12-point halftime advantage at 49-37 before stretching the margin to 15 points.
Breanna Stewart led the Liberty offensive charge with 21 points, while Jonquel Jones contributed a dominant double-double of 21 points and 13 rebounds. Sabrina Ionescu added 18 points to secure the series victory. Courtney Williams tallied 18 points for Minnesota, noting post-game that the Lynx dug too deep of a hole to climb out of against a resilient New York squad.
Playoff Exit Ends Delaere’s First WNBA Season
For Antonia Delaere, the postseason exit brings a sudden conclusion to her debut WNBA campaign with the Minnesota Lynx, as detailed by bebasket.be. Delaere remained on the bench throughout the entirety of the Game 2 elimination loss. The playoff disappointment follows closely behind the Belgian Cats’ quarterfinal exit at the FIBA World Cup.
Despite the abrupt playoff finish, Minnesota secured the regular-season top seed with a 32-11 record, earning home-court advantage throughout the postseason prior to the upset. The franchise’s historic top-to-bottom tumble arrived just a day after Cheryl Reeve claimed Coach of the Year honors and Olivia Miles received Rookie of the Year recognition.