WNBA semifinals: How New York took a 1-0 lead over Las Vegas - ESPN

The New York Liberty haven't shied away from talking about the «scars» left over from last season's loss in the WNBA Finals to the Las Vegas Aces. But in the 2024 playoffs Sunday, the top-seeded Liberty took a crucial first step toward exorcising those demons.

New York led almost wire-to-wire to win Game 1 of the semifinals 87-77 in a blockbuster rematch against the Aces in front of a crowd of 14,015. Breanna Stewart, the 2023 regular-season MVP, and Sabrina Ionescu combined for 55 of the Liberty's points, while Kelsey Plum and 2024 MVP A'ja Wilson combined for 45 points to pace the Aces.

While the No. 1 seed Liberty held court and won their opener against the No. 4 seed Aces, the No. 2 seed Minnesota Lynx fell 73-70 to the No. 3 seed Connecticut Sun. The visiting Sun beat the Lynx in part by doing two things Minnesota usually does very well: shooting 3-pointers and moving the ball.

Alyssa Thomas nearly had her fifth career triple-double in the playoffs for the Sun, finishing with 17 points, 10 rebounds and 9 assists. Fellow Sun veteran DeWanna Bonner struggled while shooting (4-of-17) but had 10 points, 11 rebounds and 5 assists. Of Marina Mabrey's team-high 20 points for Connecticut, 18 came via the 3-pointer. The Sun had 24 assists to 16 for the Lynx, who averaged a WNBA-best 23.0 APG in the regular season.

Game 1 felt like a statement for the Liberty: New York went 3-0 against the Aces in the regular season, though Las Vegas' Chelsea Gray sat out the first matchup and Wilson was sidelined in the third.

But on Sunday, the Liberty looked the part of the best team in the league, one better positioned than last year to finally win the franchise's first championship. New York led by double figures for large stretches and