Mystics beat the Liberty at the buzzer to lock in a playoff rematch

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NEW YORK — Natasha Cloud and Brittney Sykes determined they were deciding this game, no matter what.

The Washington Mystics and New York Liberty were tied with 0.5 seconds left Sunday afternoon. Coming out of a timeout, the Mystics had the ball just to the right of the New York basket, and Coach Eric Thibault called a play they hadn’t run in practice all season. As Sykes curled off an Elena Delle Donne screen, the ball was supposed to go to whomever the defense left unguarded, either Delle Donne or Sykes. Cloud said the ball was going to Sykes — period.

Cloud tossed a perfect lob, and Sykes caught the pass, hung in the air and shot a soft floater all in the same motion for the winning basket as time expired. Washington’s 90-88 victory secured a playoff rematch: The No. 7 seed Mystics (19-21) locked the Liberty (32-8) into the No. 2 seed, and the squads will open a best-of-three series here Friday. Game 2 is Sept. 19 in New York, with Game 3, if necessary, Sept. 22 in Washington.

The teams split their four-game season series; the Mystics won the season opener and the regular season finale.

“We wanted to send a message that you are going to have to see us all series long,” Cloud said. “Regardless of the injuries, regardless of whatever — you’ve got to go through a really good team still and a team that’s hungry, a team full of dogs, a team full of relentless people that have been through a f—ing storm this year and are hungry. So we just wanted to make ourselves known and let it be known that this is going to be a really good series.”

Washington had nothing but pride to play for Sunday, but Thibault wanted to thread the needle, allowing his players to get into a rhythm heading into the postseason while not playing anyone “crazy” minutes. He did just that, for the most part, although Cloud and Sykes each surpassed 30 minutes.

“I think they knew that New York was likely our matchup,” Thibault said. “And I don’t think they wanted to come in here and show any weakness or feeling that we were just going to roll over and give them one. We’ve just got prideful pro basketball players — very competitive people — and if they’re going to lace them up, they’re going to play.”

Washington led 86-76 with less than four minutes remaining, but New York ripped off a 12-2 stretch to tie the score on a Breanna Stewart layup with 21.5 seconds left. Stewart then blocked Delle Donne’s jumper, and the ball went out of bounds with 0.5 seconds left. Cloud took a step back to get a better angle to inbound over 6-foot-6 forward Jonquel Jones, the 2021 MVP. Sykes repositioned Delle Donne so she could come off the screen closer to the rim for an easier shot over the 6-4 Stewart, the 2018 MVP.

After the basket, Sykes sprinted downcourt screaming and ripping her jersey out of her shorts as Cloud waved goodbye to the New York crowd.

“We have been through a hell of a regular season,” Sykes said. “I don’t think any of us thought that this was going to happen. We didn’t know what it was going to look like. I’m just really proud of our resilience as a team.”

Sykes scored 20 points, grabbed seven rebounds and handed out six assists. Cloud posted 17 points, six rebounds and five assists. Delle Donne and Ariel Atkins had 11 points each.

Sabrina Ionescu led the Liberty with 20 points, Jones scored 19 and Betnijah Laney added 13. Stewart, a candidate to claim another MVP award, managed nine points on 4-for-17 shooting.

Here’s what else to know about the Mystics’ win:

Mystics center Shakira Austin (hip) saw a specialist Friday, and Thibault said the team wants her to see another doctor before it decides her availability in the near future. Thibault couldn’t say whether she would return during the playoffs.

“There’s still some different options, directions being discussed,” he said. “Obviously we need to make sure that we’re doing the right thing for her — not just now but long term. And she’s a future key part of this team. She’s 23 years old. And we don’t want to put her out there without a full feeling and being confident that we’re doing the right thing.”

The Liberty held a pregame ceremony to celebrate winning the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup. The team’s newest banner hangs alongside three Eastern Conference championship banners.

The Seattle Storm won the inaugural Commissioner’s Cup in 2021, and the Las Vegas Aces prevailed in 2022 before going on to win the WNBA Finals, too.

Cloud surpassed 2,000 career points to become the eighth player to hit that benchmark with the Mystics. … Tianna Hawkins reached 1,000 career rebounds. … Sykes had her first game with at least 20 points, five rebounds, five assists and two steals.