Cheryl Reeve blasts officiating, says title 'stolen' from Lynx

NEW YORK --Minnesota Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve said the 2024 WNBA title was "stolen" from her team due to what she called "incredibly disappointing" officiating in Sunday's 67-62 overtime lossto theNew York Liberty in the deciding Game 5 of the Finals.

Reeve took umbrage in particular with a foul call on Lynx center Alanna Smith with 5.2 seconds left in regulation. After missing a pair of foul shots a few plays earlier, 2023 WNBA MVP Breanna Stewart went to the free throw line and made both attempts for New York to tie the score, effectively sending the game into overtime.

"All the headlines will be, 'Reeve cries foul.' Bring it on." Reeve said. "Bring it on. Because this s--- was stolen from us. Bring it on."

The Lynx challenged the call, but it was upheld. Reeve said after the game that a third party should be involved in reviewing challenges.

"At the other end when they challenged it, if we would have turned that clip in, they would have told us that this was marginal contact, no foul. Guaranteed. Guaranteed," Reeve said. "So, when you review, there should be the same parameters that you're reviewing with, but the three people on the game need a fourth party to let them know. Because that decided the game."

Reeve initially brought up her issues with the officiating at the beginning of Minnesota's postgame news conference when asked about her offense's lack of production in the second half.

"I saw a very physical and aggressive New York team," Reeve said. "We know this from being a part of the games for so long that sometimes you get away with this stuff when you're physical and aggressive, and they certainly did. It's a shame that officiating had such a hand in a series like this."

The Liberty shot 25 free throws to the Lynx's 8. There were 21 foul calls on Minnesota and 17 on New York.

"These guys shot 30% [from the floor]. Shot 30%," Reeve said of the Liberty. "The difference was in the foul line."

Minnesota superstar Napheesa Collier, who finished with 22 points, did not make it to the free throw line in Game 5. Entering Sunday's contest, Collier -- who went 11-for-23 from the floor in Game 5 -- never had 20 field goal attempts without a single free throw attempt in her career.

"I was getting held a little bit. It was a little hard to make shots," said Collier, who fouled out with 13.0 seconds left in overtime.

Reeve elaborated on her concerns.

"It just doesn't feel right that you lose a series with that level of discrepancy," she said. "We don't have a team that whines and complains and all that stuff. Sometimes, it probably hurts us. Maybe being a little more, I don't know, something. But you have a star player like Phee that just -- I don't get it. I don't get how she can be held and go to the basket and get hit, and then a marginal, at best, at best, sends their best player to the free throw line. I mean, that's tough. It's tough to swallow."

Asked to respond to Reeve's comments, Liberty coach Sandy Brondello said of the referees, "I thought they were pretty fair."

"The last game, that's where you get give and take. Game No. 1, we should have won that game," Brondello said. "I have so much respect for Cheryl, and I have so much respect for that Minnesota Lynx team, because, man, that was ugly.

"But we found a way to win. I'm really proud of our team, how resilient we were, how we stuck together and how we continue to trust each other. That was our word today: Just trust the process. We found a way to win."

Both coaches previously critiqued the officiating in the series, with Reeve calling out how Collier was officiated differently than Stewart after Game 3 and Brondello pointing out the foul call disparity following Game 4 when the Liberty shot nine free throws to the Lynx's 20.

"Officiating, it's not that hard," Reeve said. "When someone is being held, be consistent. If you don't want to call it a hold at one end, don't call it at the other. Be consistent. Every team asks for that. Sandy asked for that last game. Three of the games in this series, we're talking about the same damn thing."

Games 1, 3 and 4 also were incredibly close until the end, each decided by two or three points. This Finals series was the first with multiple games that went to overtime, and Sunday marked the first time a winner-take-all Finals Game 5 went to OT.

Reflecting on the season, Reeve credited her team for "[doing] the things the right way. [We] built the team within the rules ... We gave hope to those teams that aren't willing to circumvent the cap or fly illegally or all the stuff that's happened over the last five years."

New York was previously fined $500,000 for illicitly chartering flights in the 2021 season. The Las Vegas Aces had their 2025 first-round draft pick rescinded for violating league rules regarding impermissible player benefits, and the franchise is being investigated by the league for sponsorship deals its players struck with the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

Reeve -- a four-time champion as coach of the Lynx (2011, 2013, 2015 and 2017) -- said the result "sucks" and compared it to Minnesota's 2016 Finals run that she said "was lost on officiating," referring to a missed shot clock violation with 1:12 left in Game 5.

"This is for a championship for both teams," Reeve said. "Let them decide it. What contact is legal should be the same for both teams. This isn't that hard. So, it's disappointing. I mean, congratulations to the Liberty on their first championship ... It took them 28 years. Congrats to them. We were that close to our fifth. Just didn't happen."