Breanna Stewart's best basketball is coming at the perfect for the Liberty

1 month ago 16

The latest installment of the competitive rivalry between the Minnesota Lynx and the New York Liberty went the Liberty's way on Friday night.

New York has Breanna Stewart, its MVP, to thank.

MORE: Breanna Stewart and Liberty face dangerous slide in WNBA playoff standings

While injuries have deeply affected the Liberty's 2026 season, Stewart -- and Jonquel Jones -- have been the constants. They have helped New York to a 25-16 record -- and with three games to go, the Liberty can still finish fourth in the standings.

— Women’s Hoops Network (@WomensHoops_USA) September 19, 2026

But in a glittering career defined by winning collectively and dominating individually, Stewart is enjoying one of her best-ever seasons. The two-time WNBA MVP was in inspired form at Target Center, where she led the Liberty to a 93-81 road win in their first game after the FIBA Women's World Cup.

Fresh off of winning FIBA World Cup MVP honors in Germany, Stewart picked up right where she left off in Minneapolis. She scored a game-high 24 points and added 10 rebounds as New York outdueled the possible top seed in the WNBA playoffs.

In addition, Stewart's key steal-and-score to extend the lead to five in the fourth quarter kept the Liberty ahead by two possessions as the Lynx attempted to make a run.

Stewie with the clutch steal and score pic.twitter.com/ZLhpmwOINW

— Shabazz 💫 (@ShowCaseShabazz) September 19, 2026

At 20.5 points per game, Stewart owns her highest per-game scoring average since her MVP season of 2023. She has been the bastion of consistency for an inconsistent Liberty team, and her personal brilliance might be the difference between home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs...or a matchup against one of the top two seeds.