The Lynx had the Liberty right where they wanted them. Minnesota led by 15 points at home in Wednesday's Game 3 championship series matchup in the best-of-five series.

The highlight play of the game was Sabrina Ionescu hitting a clutch 3-pointer with one second remaining on the shot clock at the end of the game to give New York an 80-77 victory.

The Liberty didn't play their "A" game, but still came away with the win.

The Lynx face three obstacles in trying to stave off elimination - a talent gap compared to how good the Liberty are, a quick mental turnaround following a devastating home loss after blowing a huge lead and center Alanna Smith's back injury.

Minnesota built its lead when Smith was on the court. Smith, though, only played 20 minutes after injuring her back guarding New York center Jonquel Jones late in the second quarter. The Lynx were plus-20 in points when Smith played. They were minus-19 in points during back-up center Myisha Hines-Allen nearly 18 minutes of playing time.

Napheesa Collier is Minnesota's superstar. Smith is the Lynx's unsung player. She is the team's top shotblocker, second-leading rebounder and fourth-leading scorer. The Lynx are in trouble against the best team in the WNBA with Smith at less than 100 percent.

No doubt the Lynx will give it a great shot. I just don't see them winning so I'm going to lay the higher juice and back New York on the money line.