From Celebration to Elimination: Olivia Miles and Cheryl Reeve Earned Their Flowers … Now the Lynx Have to Respond After Dropping Game 1
Monday brought a reminder of just how much this Lynx team accomplished before the playoffs even began.
Olivia Miles was unanimously named the WNBA Rookie of the Year, while Cheryl Reeve earned her record fifth Coach of the Year award. Miles received all 74 votes from the national media panel after averaging 19.8 points, 6.0 assists and 4.7 rebounds during her historic rookie season. She also set the WNBA rookie scoring record with 790 points. Reeve received 40 of 74 votes after leading Minnesota to a league-best 33-11 record and the No. 1 seed.
Those are significant individual honors, and deserved ones. But there is an interesting twist to the timing. Just hours after Miles and Reeve were recognized for what they helped Minnesota accomplish over 44 regular-season games, the Lynx were preparing for something entirely different: an elimination game.
The Minnesota Lynx opened the playoffs with a loss they probably didn’t expect.
The top-seeded Lynx fell to the eighth-seeded New York Liberty 91-75 at Target Center on Sunday, surrendering a game that, for much of the first half, looked like it was there for the taking.
But this loss wasn’t simply about New York being better. It was about Minnesota getting away from what has made this team so difficult to defend all season: movement, rhythm, freedom and offensive flow.
The Lynx Had Control … Until They Didn’t
Minnesota came out of the gate with energy, scoring the first six points. Then the game started to shift. A couple of turnovers led to transition opportunities for New York, and suddenly the Liberty were knocking down 3-pointers and forcing Cheryl Reeve to call timeout with Minnesota trailing 15-6.
The Lynx eventually settled in. They found more offensive rhythm, got stops and began moving the ball better.
Nia Brodie (formerly Coffey) became one of the biggest bright spots of the afternoon, providing an enormous spark off the bench. She was nearly perfect from the field and finished with a playoff career-high 16 points in 19 minutes. Her production was exactly what Minnesota needed, particularly with Napheesa Collier and Natasha Howard dealing with foul trouble.
By halftime, Minnesota had completely flipped the game.
A 3-pointer from Olivia Miles gave the Lynx the lead, and Minnesota entered halftime ahead 44-40. At that point, the question wasn’t whether the Lynx could beat New York. It was whether they could maintain the rhythm they had finally found.
Then the Offense Became “Sticky”
Lynx Guard Kayla McBride described the problem perfectly after the game. She called Minnesota’s lack of offensive flow and freedom its “kryptonite.” Minnesota’s offense has been one of the biggest reasons this team earned the No. 1 seed. When the Lynx are moving, cutting, getting to the second side and creating space, they are incredibly difficult to defend.
But New York’s size and physicality disrupted that rhythm, and Minnesota allowed it to happen for too long. Reeve acknowledged that the problem wasn’t something that suddenly appeared in the second half. She said the Lynx struggled even in the first half, despite having the lead, describing the offense as having too much “grinding.”
Minnesota wasn’t playing its best basketball even when it was ahead, and eventually that caught up with the team. The Lynx shot just 33% in the second half, according to Reeve, putting increasing pressure on a defense that was already dealing with foul trouble.
Foul Trouble Changed the Game
The officiating was a significant source of frustration throughout the afternoon. Collier, Howard and Coffey all found themselves in foul trouble. For Collier and Howard in particular, the situation affected Minnesota’s ability to defend at a high level in the paint.
That matters against New York. When you are trying to defend Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones and the Liberty’s size, you need your frontcourt players available.
But Reeve didn’t make excuses for it. In fact, she specifically said Minnesota couldn’t give Stewart 12 free throws and criticized late-clock fouls as unnecessary.
Minnesota still allowed itself to get pulled away from its defensive discipline.Once the fouls started piling up, New York gained another advantage.
Breanna Stewart Was the Difference
Let’s give credit where it’s due. Breanna Stewart was outstanding. She finished with 34 points and 12 rebounds while shooting 11-of-18 from the field. New York also went 13-of-25 from 3-point range.
Minnesota did a solid job against Stewart early, but as Reeve explained, the Lynx began fouling her and allowed her to get to the free-throw line repeatedly.
That is something Minnesota has to clean up in Game 2.
The question isn’t necessarily how to completely stop Breanna Stewart. That’s unrealistic.
The better question is how Minnesota can make her work harder for everything.
How do the Lynx get her off her spots? How do they make the entry passes more difficult? How do they avoid unnecessary fouls? How do they prevent her from getting comfortable late in the shot clock?
And Then There’s Olivia Miles
Miles struggled against New York’s length and physicality in Game 1, finishing with 11 points on 3-of-12 shooting and one assist. But Coach Reeve isn’t concerned about her ability to adjust.
“She’s a smart player,” Reeve said. “She’ll figure it out.”
That’s the message Miles needs to hear. She doesn’t have to become a different player. She has to become a more adaptable version of herself.
The Message From Kayla McBride Was Very Clear
McBride’s message might be the most important one heading into Game 2: Don’t panic.
She talked about confidence, continuing to believe in the game plan and taking the same shots. She talked about trusting the same defensive schemes and maintaining the same mindset.
Most importantly, she said she didn’t want this team to drop its head or stop believing in one another. This is a best of three series. Minnesota now heads to New York facing elimination, with Game 2 scheduled for Tuesday night.
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