Cheryl Reeve accuses officials of favoring Breanna Stewart over Napheesa Collier after Lynx's heartbreaking loss: "Game's called differently"

Minnesota Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve expressed her frustration with the officiating following a heartbreaking 80-77 loss to the New York Liberty in Game 3 of the 2024 WNBA Finals. The veteran coach criticized the referees, accusing them of giving preferential treatment to New York's star Breanna Stewart over Lynx's own standout Napheesa Collier, when it came to foul calls during the nerve-racking game on Wednesday.

After the game, coach Reeve was asked about Stewart's game-changing performance in the second half. While Reeve acknowledged the two-time WNBA champion's heroic effort that single-handedly brought the Liberty back into contention, she was critical of how often Stewart was sent to the free-throw line.

"She got fouled. She was asserting herself in that way. The game's called differently for Phee (Napheesa Collier) than it is for Stewie (Breanna Stewart, for sure... for whatever reason, we have a hard time getting to the foul line in this series," Reeve told reporters, as quoted by WNBA reporter Myles Ehrlich on X (formerly Twitter).

Stewart delivered a historic WNBA Finals performance, dominating both ends of the floor with a massive double-double. The two-time league MVP poured in 30 points, grabbed 11 rebounds, added one assist, one steal and four blocks in just under 36 minutes of action.

At the free-throw line, Stewart was flawless, going 10-for-10. In contrast, Napheesa Collier, who scored 22 points, only got to the free-throw line four times, converting three of her attempts.

Lynx coach urges players to weather "ups and downs" of WNBA Finals

The Minnesota Lynx now find themselves in a must-win scenario, trailing 2-1 in the best-of-five WNBA Finals. Following their Game 3 defeat, Reeve called on her team to show resilience and mental toughness to navigate the "ups and downs" of the Finals and keep their championship hopes alive.

"There’s so many ups and downs and swings all around, and it takes special mental toughness and physical toughness to sort of weather those swings, and here we are," Reeve said. "We’re disappointed. We’re home. We played well and just couldn’t come up with the win."

The Minnesota Lynx will aim to even the series when they take the court against Breanna Stewart and the New York Liberty in Game 4 on Friday at the Target Center in Minneapolis.