A controversial call against the Lynx in the waning seconds of regulation led to the Liberty sending Game 5 to overtime, winning the franchise’s first WNBA title.
As a packed Barclays Center celebrated the New York Liberty’s overtime victory over the Minnesota Lynx to win the franchise’s first WNBA championship, Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve made no secret of her displeasure about the officiating in the winner-take-all Game 5.
“All the headlines will be ‘Reeve cries foul.’ Bring it on,” Reeve said. “Bring it on. Because this s—- was stolen from us.”Controversial Call Sends Game Into Overtime
At the center of her ire was the foul call on Lynx center Alanna Smith with 5.2 seconds left in regulation, which sent 2023 WNBA MVP Breanna Stewart to the free throw line with the Lynx up 60-58. The Liberty star had missed two foul shots a few plays earlier, but she made both attempts, tying the score. The game went into overtime, where the Liberty pulled away to win 67-62.
The Lynx challenged the call, but it was upheld after video review. WNBA rules state “incidental contact with the hand against an offensive player shall be ignored if it does not affect the player’s speed, quickness, balance, and/or rhythm.”
In her postgame comments, Reeve argued that a third party should be involved in reviewing challenges, rather than the officials who made the original call.
“At the other end when they challenged it, if we would have turned that clip in, they would have told us that this was marginal contact, no foul. Guaranteed. Guaranteed. So, when you review, there should be the same parameters that you’re reviewing with, but the three people on the game need a fourth party to let them know.
