New York Liberty vs Minnesota Lynx: Player stats and box score for Oct. 16 | Game 3, WNBA Finals

The WNBA Finals returned to Minneapolis for the first time since 2017 for Game 3 between the New York Liberty and Minnesota Lynx on Wednesday. The Liberty came out on top 80-77 to take a 2-1 series lead. Sabrina Ionescu hit the game-winning 3-point shot with one second left.

Ionescu got the ball at the top of the key and faked a drive against Kayla McBride. The move shook off McBride and the Liberty star then stepped back from near the Lynx logo and hit the game-winner.

Minnesota had a chance to tie the game but missed at the buzzer.

The Liberty were down by as many as 15 points in the first quarter before coming back in the third period.

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New York Liberty vs Minnesota Lynx: Player stats and box score for Game 3

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Liberty players' stats

Players	PTS	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PF	MIN	FG	3PT	FT	+/-
B. Laney-Hamilton	2	5	3	2	1	2	3	35	1-3	0-2	0-0	0
B. Stewart	30	11	1	1	4	4	2	36	9-20	2-6	10-10	-2
J. Jones	13	5	4	1	2	2	3	33	5-10	1-3	2-2	3
L. Fiebich	13	4	2	0	0	2	1	34	5-9	3-5	0-0	-6
S. Ionescu	13	5	6	1	1	3	3	32	5-12	3-8	0-0	1
K. Thornton	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	12	0-1	0-0	0-0	12
N. Sabally	4	1	0	1	1	2	1	11	2-4	0-0	0-0	5
C. Vandersloot	5	1	2	1	0	1	0	8	1-2	1-1	2-2	2
K. Burke	DNP
J. Sherrod	DNP
M. Davis	DNP
I. Dojkic	DNP

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Lynx players' stats

Players	PTS	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PF	MIN	FG	3PT	FT	+/-
B. Carleton	14	4	0	0	0	1	1	34	5-7	2-4	2-2	4
A. Smith	2	6	4	1	0	1	5	20	0-3	0-2	2-2	20
N. Collier	22	9	2	5	1	4	3	40	9-22	1-1	3-4	-3
K. McBride	19	2	2	2	0	1	4	39	7-16	5-9	0-0	0
C. Williams	12	5	8	2	0	2	1	33	4-14	1-4	3-4	0
M. Hines-Allen	4	6	1	1	0	1	1	18	2-8	0-1	0-0	-19
C. Zandalasini	4	0	1	0	0	0	1	8	2-2	0-0	0-0	-8
N. Hiedeman	0	0	2	1	0	0	2	9	0-3	0-0	0-0	-9
D. Juhasz	DNP
D. Miller	DNP
A. Pili	DNP
O. Epoupa	DNP

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New York Liberty vs Minnesota Lynx game summary

With the crowd buzzing, Minnesota raced out the gates and built a 15-point lead at around the three-minute mark of the first quarter. Kayla McBride was on fire with 10 points in the period and the team's defense kept New York from making any big runs.

In the second quarter, things slowed down for both teams as the Lynx tried to maintain their advantage. However, the Liberty managed to trim the deficit to eight points (43-35) at the end of the half.

The Minnesota Lynx kept the New York Liberty at bay in the first eight minutes of the second half, maintaining a nine-point lead. But New York finished the third quarter on an 8-0 run, meaning Minnesota only had a 62-61 advantage heading into the final period.

The Liberty completed the comeback in a close fourth quarter, with Sabrina Ionescu hitting the game-winning shot from beyond the arc. It was the second game-winning shot of the series, with Napheesa Collier having made a fadeaway jumper in Game 1 to shock Liberty fans.

The Liberty lead the series 2-1 and are one win away from their first-ever WNBA championship. The Lynx, on the other hand, will look to force a Game 5.

Breanna Stewart had a game-high 30 points with 11 rebounds and four blocks for the Liberty. Collier finished with 22 points, nine rebounds and five steals. Game 4 is scheduled for Friday with tip-off at 8:00 p.m. ET.