Talent advantage. Rest advantage. The Minnesota Lynx were 3-1 against the New York Liberty entering the WNBA Finals, but the Liberty deserved their status as favorites, at least in Game 1 at the Barclays Center on Thursday night.

The announced crowd of 17,732 — largest for New York this season — would be going nuts for the team that’s been the W’s best all season, the team that had three days off compared to Minnesota’s one.

For three-and-a-half quarters, the script stayed straight. New York got out to an incredible start, a 32-19 first quarter on the back of 3-point shooting and two-way energy. Jonquel Jones responded to all the questions immediately, staying out of foul trouble and scoring ten of her game-high 24/10/3 in the first quarter.

Running the floor and getting quick seals, grabbing four of the team’s preposterous 20 offensive boards, making quick decisions, it was Jones at her very best, a variable that makes the equation for the Lynx that much tougher..

New York took an 18-point lead, then conspired with some tough Minnesota shot-making by contributing silly turnovers and stagnant offense to cut their lead in half.

However, they rebounded, though just barely. Sabrina Ionescu and Breanna Stewart did not play well, looking like the worst versions of themselves and a far cry from the show they put on vs. the Las Vegas Aces. Particularly Sabrina Ionescu, who shot 8-of-26 with three assists and three turnovers, repeatedly bashing her head against the same wall when Minnesota switched screens against her...

Stewie (6-of-21) was only slightly better when faced with the same dilemma, though it would’ve been hard to be worse. Ionescu’s series against the Aces cannot be overstated: It was MVP-level stuff, offensive dominance, roasting every coverage. Thursday’s Game 1 was the opposite: over-indulgent, stagnant, selfish (maybe not in her intentions, but certainly in her results).

“I think we forced some of the action,” said Sandy Brondello. “We weren’t moving it good enough. We couldn’t get downhill as much ... Just the principles of play for us. How we want to play, get to the next action.”

Leonie Fiebich, partially masking much emotion, said it when answering if there was anything particularly surprising about Minnesota’s switch-heavy defense: “No, because I think we have seen that before, right? Stewie, Sab, people switching on them, putting size on Sab. We just didn’t move the ball well. I think we’re just over-dribbling, We’re not making good decisions.”

And yet, the Liberty were about to get away with it, building the lead up to 15 points with 5:20 to go. Jones never let up, Fiebich had hit five threes, Courtney Vandersloot came off the bench to do what she does, contributing 8/4/3. Betnijah Laney-Hamilton was largely a non-factor partly due to her ailing knee, but still provided 26 minutes of 5/4/4 ball. It was enough.

Then they blew it. They just blew it. They choked.

Minnesota — led by Courtney Williams and Napheesa Collier — was awesome. Kayla McBride made every timely shot, while Williams and Collier carried the load, all the way up to Williams’ go-ahead four-point play in the final seconds...

Did Ionescu commit a foul? Maybe. Does it really matter? No.

For a ten minute span stretching the second and third quarters, New York scored nine points. Against all things holy, they survived it. Then they did it again, and deservedly paid the price.

After a refereeing debacle that resulted in a jump-ball, a jump-ball violation, a missed foul call, and a last-second foul call, Breanna Stewart went to the line with a chance to win the game. Make. Miss. Overtime.

The Liberty went down four early in overtime, but tied it after a Jones three and a coast-to-coast steal before Courtney Williams answered with the game-winning layup, driving right down Main Street.

Stewie again had a chance for redemption, driving the lane as the extra frame neared expiration, arm reaching toward the backboard and narrowly escaping the grasp of DPOY Collier, who had three steals and six blocks, and ... smoking it off the backboard.

Liberty lose.

Many of the 17,000+ fans stayed behind at the scene, resembling witnesses of a jaywalker getting flattened by a bus. Even the Lynx fans could only crack smiles, unable to hoot and holler too loudly around all the police tape.

Have I credited the Lynx enough? Okay.

This is an all-time terrible loss. Any sport. They got up 90 freaking shots. If the Liberty can recover from this, the 1995 Orlando Magic should be exiled from polite society forever. All Nick Anderson did was miss a couple free throws for Christ’s sake.

“It was the craziest thing I’ve ever been a part of.” - Courtney Vandersloot.