​For the first time in WNBA history, the No. 8 seed has knocked off the No. 1 seed in the playoffs. Unfortunately, it happened to the Minnesota Lynx, whose dominant regular season sputtered in the end before they were swept by the New York Liberty. The Liberty stole Game 1 in Minneapolis on Sunday, and then swept the best-of-three series with an 87-71 blowout win in Game 2 in New York on Tuesday night. Minnesota had no answer for Jonquel Jones, who led the Liberty with 21 points and 13 rebounds. Breanna Stewart added 21 points and Sabrina Ionescu scored 18, including a couple of deep three-pointers to thwart a Lynx rally in the third quarter. Courtney Williams led Minnesota with 18 points, while Napheesa Collier and Kayla McBride each scored 14. Olivia Miles, who was named the consensus WNBA Rookie of the Year on Monday, was held to five points on 1-of-8 shooting in just 16 minutes. The Lynx started the season 31-7, only to lose four of six to finish the regular season and then get swept in the first round. “I thought the playoffs would be hard for our team, regardless of who we were playing in the first round,” head coach Cheryl Reeve, who won her fifth career Coach of the Year award on Monday, said. “We probably needed a little better matchup to do some of the things that we did all season long, but that’s not how it works.”Reeve also admitted that she never felt this year’s team had championship vibes. “There are sometimes when you have that team and that would be the case, you should feel that way,” Reeve said. “I have not felt like we’ve had that team over these three years, and so what we’re doing is sort of maybe exceeding expectations in the regular season, and then when it comes playoffs, maybe we don’t quite have the right group to be effective.“I just know we have some work to do. I have to help us. I have to get us the appropriate help to do it, make the hard decisions to do that. I couldn’t get us there in this series, and so it’s on me. I have to help them win in the playoffs … both as an executive and as the coach, and I’ll find a way to do that.”Now Minnesota enters an uncertain future. Miles should continue her ascent to greatness, but Collier, the longtime franchise star, is an unrestricted free agent. Williams, McBride, and Natasha Howard are all under contract through next season. If Collier leaves, the Lynx will look similar but different in 2027. It’ll be Miles’ team to lead, and she’ll have to do it amid pressure that will only build after the Lynx failed to reach the playoff bar this season. We are in the age of big media consolidation and content networks. But even with the proliferation of AI, nothing can beat the quality and inherent knowledge of local sports journalism. Our writing room consists of a Wildcat, a Gopher, and even a Mustang. We know the Minnesota towns and the great names that played on its diamonds, courts, fields or rinks. Subscribe NOW to the new Bring Me The Sp