NEW YORK — The New York Liberty return home trying to keep their season alive after a loss to Atlanta in Game 2 of their best-of-five WNBA semifinals series left the team in a major hole and confused about whether they had a timeout at the end of the game.
The eighth-seeded Liberty trail 2-0 after falling 101-98 in overtime to the Dream on Wednesday night. They now must win three games in a row to reach the WNBA Finals. No team has ever rallied from a 2-0 deficit in league history. Game 3 is Friday night in New York.
“We’re not focused on winning three games straight right now,” Liberty star Breanna Stewart said. “We’re focused on winning one game, and that’s Friday, and then we go from there. This group has experience. I’ve been part of some crazy series and I have a lot of confidence in our group.”
The confusion came in the final seconds of OT when New York trailed and Angel Reese was at the foul line. Stewart asked the officials whether the team had their reset timeout remaining. Stewart said the official answered no. In a postgame pool report, the head official contradicted that, saying New York did have their timeout.
Without the timeout, where New York could have advanced the ball to midcourt, Stewart missed a desperation shot at the buzzer. The Liberty have made an official inquiry with the WNBA although its not clear what would even come from that.
Atlanta is now one victory away from reaching the WNBA Finals for the first time since 2013. The Dream have looked dominant throughout the playoffs led by Reese and Jordin Canada. Reese scored six of her team’s 13 points in overtime. She made two free throws with 4.3 seconds left after Sabrina Ionescu overthrew a pass with her team down one.
That's when the Liberty weren't sure if they had a timeout or not and Stewart asked the official. Usually it's the responsibility of a coach on the bench to keep track of timeouts, not referees.
Canada had 23 points and eight assists in the Game 2 victory and was disruptive on the defensive end. Reese and Canada have helped the team win all four of the Dream’s playoff games, leading a swarming defense. Atlanta forced New York into 35 turnovers combined in the first two games. The 16 turnovers on Wednesday led to 28 Dream points.
The Dream won Game 2 without star Allisha Gray, who was sidelined with a finger injury from the first game. She is day-to-day. A win by Atlanta on Friday would give her a week to recover before Game 1 of the WNBA Finals, which is schedule for a week from Saturday.
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