Liberty swept out of playoffs after 85-83 loss to Dream in Game 3

Fiifi Frimpong, New York Daily News on Oct 9, 2026

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

NEW YORK — The Liberty went from making history to no longer being in the picture.

Less than two weeks ago, the Liberty were the talk of the WNBA, becoming the first No. 8 seed to eliminate a No. 1 seed in league history.

The victory booked them a second-round series against the young Atlanta Dream — a matchup that didn’t last as long as expected.

The result: a three-game sweep as the Liberty dropped Game 3 of the Dream at Barclays Center on Friday night.

A 85-83 loss sealed the Liberty’s fate, closing a potential championship run too soon for a second consecutive season.

The season essentially came down to the Liberty’s best player: Breanna Stewart.

A play drawn up for the Liberty’s MVP got her a good look to tie the game in the final seconds.

She missed. DeWanna Bonner rushed the ball down the court and got fouled, resulting in two made free throws. That iced the game.

Stewart later made a shot at the buzzer, but that didn’t matter. The Liberty were down two instead of forcing OT like in Wednesday’s Game 2.

The Liberty were unable to come out on top of the chippiest, most physical game of the series.

Even Jonquel Jones’ 26 points and dominance on the glass — six offensive boards and 14 overall — wasn’t enough to force Game 4 in front of Liberty fans Sunday at Barclays Center.

Angel Reese scored a team-high 22 points to go with nine rebounds for the Dream.

Stewart finished with 26 points and six assists for the Liberty, while Sabrina Ionescu added 12 points.

The Liberty played like their lives were on the line, but at the end, the Dream put together enough possessions to clinch the franchise’s fourth WNBA Finals in history.