The New York Liberty would’ve wished Alyssa Thomas to make that final-second lay-up. Hold up, why would Liberty give a game away, you ask? Well, to give their biggest star the time to recover and continue contributing to their bid for the three-peat. Liberty eventually won 89-76, and Stewart contributed with 18 points, six rebounds and four assists. However, the trouble came during the final stages of the epic,

3 minutes into overtime, Liberty’s core piece went down, grabbing at her left knee. Stewart attempted to play through her injury but asked to be subbed out of the game about a minute later. The veteran limped off the court and was seen in tears on the bench. She has already missed 13 games in the regular season with a bone bruise in her right knee. However, Stewart will take respite from the fact that Sabrina Ionescu was on hand to help the team close out the win. Still, it came with struggle, as Monique Akoa Makani held Ionescu to zero points, despite which the 27-year-old found a way to impact proceedings.

Asked about the adjustments she had to make, Ionescu had a clear answer. “Yeah, I mean, the great thing is I’m not just a scorer. Um, and I was able to continue to facilitate and find ways to help us win, um, you know, through my facilitating. And I think that’s something I’ve always been able to, you know, hang my hat on is knowing the gravity that I have with the ball in my hands as a scorer, but most importantly as a passer, and continuing to find different angles and what they were doing, um, how aggressive they were being, you know, with me as a pick and roll player.”

Acting as the ball handler in Stewart’s absence, Ionescu had four assists in overtime, which helped the likes of Natasha Cloud and Leonie Feibitch amass four and five points, respectively. None of the other players barring Stewart herself had a single dime during overtime for the Liberty.

Sabrina Ionescu finished with 16 points, 7 assists, and 6 rebounds on the night while going 3-12 from downtown. It was a night filled with physicality on both ends of the court rather than a free-flowing offense. It wasn’t just Ionescu. Kennedy Burke went 0-of-5 with two turnovers off the bench, Emma Meesseman missed the shots we’ve seen her swish with her eyes closed while finishing with 1-6. The inefficiency was in both teams as Satou Sabally went 2-17 with Monique Akoa Makani’s 2-11.

So it was just that kind of a game, and Ionescu did finish with team-high assists and a +/- of +7. There is a star mark to those assists as they came with turnovers. Ionescu finished with 5, which was also a team high, and the entire team racked them up to a total of 21. Fortunately for them, the Mercury were off their game too, as they couldn’t completely capitalize on Liberty’s mistakes, including Thomas chucking that game-winning lay-up. The Liberty have scraped past Mercury with some good fortune, and like Sandy Brondello pointed out, things get easier here on.

Still, fans are bound to be concerned about Breanna Stewart. During her 13-game absence, the team’s record slipped had slipped to 5-8, which suggests that the Liberty may be up for trouble if she does not speedily return. Coach Brondello admitted that Stewart asked to be substituted out and “looked uncomfortable” on the bench.

Liberty brace for Game 2 as Breanna Stewart’s status hangs in the balance

There is still no clarity on the extent of Breanna Stewart’s injury. Brondello said after the game, “No, no, we only just got back to the locker room. I’m sure she’ll be evaluated soon.” Stewart’s awkward fall on her left knee looked like the toll of overcompensating for that recent right knee injury. It is an established pattern where unilateral knee issues alter gait, shift forces to the opposite limb, and raise contralateral overuse risk. There is a possibility that Stewart was overusing her left knee, and this fall just triggered another injury. However, we will wait for an official confirmation after the medical team assesses the injury.

The Liberty could miss Stewart at least through what is remaining of the first round of the playoffs. The positive part is that they need only one win, which could be achieved at home in their next game. “We have the advantage. We won an away game and we won on their home court. Now the advantage is for us to take care of it. And this, like you said, it is an experienced team. We’ve been here before, and we know what our goal is, and you know, we want to keep playing,” coach Sandy Brondello said.

The Mercury are not used to postseason wins. They are hunting for their first playoff win since 2021, when it was Brondello that took them to the WNBA finals. Their inexperience was pretty visible in Game 1, and the job gets easier for the Liberty at home, especially since they have a 17-5 record at home. The Liberty will likely clean up the scratchy play from Game 1 and the silly mistakes. It will not be a complete cakewalk as Alyssa Thomas is still firing on all cylinders for the Mercury. The winner of the series will likely face the Minnesota Lynx in the semi-finals after their biggest postseason win against the Valkyries has them set up for a sweep.