Before Game 3 which will be played on the night of Wednesday to Thursday (2:00 a.m. French time), the Liberty and the Lynx are back to back (1-1) in these WNBA Finals 2024, even if New York had control of the first two matches.
Because without its collapse during Game 1, New York would undoubtedly already be very close to celebrating the title…
This is because behind Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu, the threat can come from anywhere in the major five, with Jonquel Jones and Leonie Fiebich who can both fulfill their role as a third offensive option.
But during Game 2, it was Betnijah Laney-Hamilton who did it, with 20 points at 8/14 shooting, including 4/6 from distance!
“She plays both ends of the court, and she plays hard” explains Sandy Brondello, her coach. “She's a winner, and I'm happy that she was successful tonight, and that she can build on that. »
Role players who make the difference
This is because the season has not been easy for the fullback/winger, who has missed quite a few matches due to a knee problem, and who has struggled to find rhythm since the start of the playoffs.
“Seeing a sample of what I can really do feels really good”she could breathe like this.
For Minnesota, the ability of New York's “role players” to provide scoring in support of the stars is a problem, as recognized by Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve.
“We have to find players who bring in addition to the starters (stars) and, in the first two matches, they managed to do that” she concludes “For our part, we have difficulty doing it consistently. We have to get there. »
