After an incredibly successful regular season, the No. 1 seed Minnesota Lynx were eliminated from the playoffs by the No. 8 seed New York Liberty in a round one sweep.
Following the roster shakeup last offseason, the Lynx still entered the 2026 season as title favorites. So, what exactly happened to the buzzsaw team that ran through the regular season?
Olivia Miles’ Historic Season Ended With a Thud
The story of the Lynx’s season starts and ends with Olivia Miles.
The first-year guard out of TCU had a phenomenal regular season, unanimously winning Rookie of the Year and finishing second in MVP voting. Unfortunately for Minnesota, she had a rough go at it in her first playoffs.
Miles’ efficiency was a primary catalyst behind her success. In the regular season, Miles shot 49% from the field on 14 attempts, and 38% from deep. In her two playoff games, however, she shot 4-of-20 from the field and 2-of-8 from long range.
With averages of just eight points, one assist, and five rebounds per game, Miles essentially played herself out of Minnesota’s rotation. In Game 2, she only logged 17 minutes, as coach Reeve turned to Nia Brodie down the stretch.
The Liberty Plugged the Paint and Took Away Miles’ Game
Miles’ poor efficiency could have something to do with the Liberty’s defense, specifically, their paint defense. Miles is a guard who excels in the paint, with flashy layups and passes galore. The Liberty’s response to that was to plug the paint with top defenders and big bodies.
That started with Jonquel Jones and Breanna Stewart. The two former MVPs played pivotal defense on some of the Lynx’s best players, but also clogged the paint, preventing Miles from finding her rhythm. The Liberty also gave Han Xu extended minutes, a 6-foot-11 center, whose height alone makes finishing at the rim nearly impossible.
New York’s depth, which includes Xu, Marine Johannes and Rebecca Allen provided valuable minutes whenever the starters needed a rest. Despite only playing a combined 27 minutes in the closeout game, all three finished with a positive plus/minus.
Contrasting that with some of the Lynx’s depth, like Dorka Juhász, who finished with a -16 plus/minus in the closeout game, it’s easy to see who made more of an impact.
The Liberty’s Big Three Outplayed Minnesota’s Best
Despite their middling 26-18 record, the Liberty are far from a true No. 8 seed. Their roster features some of the best talent in the league, including Jones, Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu. When fully healthy, their lineup also includes Satou Sabally, a former top-five MVP finisher.
Jones, Stewart and Ionescu all outperformed their Lynx counterparts. Stewart especially was the engine of the offense, scoring 34 points in Game 1 and 21 points in Game 2. Ionescu was also her usual self, splashing deep threes at crucial moments in both games.
Ionescu wasn’t efficient on paper, but she delivered in the moments that mattered.
Without Miles Firing, the Lynx Had No Offensive Answer
Despite the Lynx’s top-ranked defense, the Liberty’s star power was too much to contain.
Courtney Williams and Natasha Howard both made the All-Star team this year, and Napheesa Collier likely would have joined them had she not missed time with injury. But none of the three provided enough offense when the team needed it most. Only Williams scored more than 15 points in either game, and she did so on an inefficient 8-for-17 from the field.
All three feed off Miles’ playmaking. When she goes cold, the rest of the offense stalls with her.
The Liberty Just Have Minnesota’s Number
The Lynx are at their best when the ball moves and everyone scores. The Liberty are built differently, as they have a few stars surrounded by role players who know their jobs.
The talent gap showed on both ends of the floor. Dating back to their 2024 WNBA Finals matchup, New York has had Minnesota’s number. A historic regular season didn’t change that.
The Liberty’s offensive firepower, interior defense, and sheer size stifled everything the Lynx wanted to do. As a result, it produced the first-ever 8-over-1 upset in WNBA playoff history.
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