Lynx-Liberty WNBA Finals Game 2 preview: Series fires back up after a dramatic opening

Best-of-five series

Thursday: Lynx 95, Liberty 93 (OT)

Sunday: at Barclays Center (2 p.m., ABC)

Wednesday: at Target Center in Minneapolis (7 p.m., ESPN)

Friday (if necessary): at Target Center (7 p.m., ESPN)

Sunday, Oct. 20 (if necessary): at Barclays Center, (7 p.m., ESPN)

Opening bell: Matching the best comeback in WNBA Finals history, the Lynx — down 18 at one point — rallied for the 95-93 overtime victory. The team was down 11 with 3 minutes, 23 seconds to play in regulation but finished the fourth quarter 12-1 and outlasted the Liberty in the OT period. Minnesota outscored New York 23-10 over the final eight-plus minutes of the game, with Napheesa Collier (eight) and Courtney Williams (13) scoring 21 of those. The Lynx held the Liberty to 37.9% shooting, pushing their record to 181-11 since 2011 when holding an opponent under 40%.

Watch her: Expect a very motivated Breanna Stewart. The Liberty star scored 18 points in Game 1 but made just six of 21 shots and two of six three-pointers. She went to the line for two free throws with 0.8 seconds left in regulation and her team down a point, but she made just one, leading to overtime. She had a good look at a 4-footer in the closing moments of OT that would have tied the game.

Injuries: Neither team reports any injuries.

Forecast: The Lynx took a first-quarter punch in Game 1 and came back. But record-setting rallies don’t happen that often in the playoffs, so the Lynx will have to be better from the start.