Liberty's Breanna Stewart Rises vs. Phoenix Despite Defeat

A loss would officially end the Liberty's first-ever postseason title defense while a win would situate them against the Minnesota Lynx in a rematch of last fall's Finals. At the forefront of the cause will well be Stewart, the last Liberty medical casualty that had to miss the final stanzas of the victorious opener with what she later revealed was a sprained MCL.

As they've had to so often in a year where injury reports have resembled starting lineups, the Liberty balanced acknowledgement of its shortcomings with a sense of optimism. Leading the latter cause was Stewart, who felt her fleeting showing in Game 2 (2-of-6 from the floor, 2 rebounds and assists in 20 minutes) served as the perfect tune-up for the finale.

"I think that it probably became more of like a mental barrier than a physical one," Stewart said. "Obviously, everyone knows what I'm dealing with. But the good about today was I was able to test it, I was able to see how I felt. I look forward to Friday of really letting loose. I think that you could tell that they wanted to run the high ball screen on me and really see how that went. It worked for them today, but we'll be ready for it on Friday."

In another metropolitan momentum boost before tip-off, the Liberty injury report is fully blank, with nary a mention of Stewart after she went down in a relative heap after Game 1.

Stewart's packed postseason resume speaks for itself, as does the Liberty's sterling 23-10 mark when she's on the floor. No matter what was, or what is, bothering Stewart, she wasn't going to let her most noticeable intangible go to waste in the aftermath.

In an understandably quiet locker room, Stewart was said to have spoken up, according to Emma Meesseman, and the three-time champion revealed snippets of her message in the aftermath, one that served as an inspiring thought ... and a harrowing, if not honest, reality check.

"The message is, everybody, keep our heads up," Stewart said. "This is a series, and Phoenix is a tough team. They came in and they embarrassed us on our home court, and now we have to go back there for Game 3, winner-take-all."

"If we're not ready for that, then, you know, we shouldn't be here."