Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu would not be shut down.

After trailing for most of the night and falling into a 15-point hole at one point, Stewart erupted in the second half before Ionescu drilled a game-winner and left the Target Center absolutely stunned. After Ionescu nailed a shot from just inside the Lynx logo at halfcourt with just over a second left on the clock, the Liberty cruised to an 80-77 victory in Game 3 of the WNBA Finals on Wednesday night.

That gave the Liberty a 2-1 series lead, and now they are one win away from what would be their first league championship.

The Liberty led for about two minutes total in Game 3 on Wednesday night, and they looked good almost from the jump. The Lynx opened the game trailing 21-7 and forced seven turnovers in that period before building a 15-point lead at the climax.

But eventually Stewart left in the second half. She sparked a quick 8-0 run to end the third quarter and cut the Lynx deficit to just one point with a huge and-one in the final seconds. She scored 14 points in the third quarter.

Stewart also scored the first eight points of the fourth quarter for the Liberty and quickly tied the game at another and-one. That moved her to 30 points, marking her third night of 30 points in a WNBA Finals game and tying Angel McCoughtry for the most in league history.

But after a Stewart free throw with just over six minutes remaining, the Liberty was largely shut down. No one else scored for New York over the next three minutes, allowing the Lynx to stay one step ahead. Finally, Jonquel Jones hit a three-pointer and then followed it up with a layup at the 90-second mark, giving the Liberty their first lead since the opening series.

That, along with an Ionescu three-pointer just 30 seconds later, gave the Liberty a four-point lead. That was just Ionescu’s second three-pointer of the evening.

The Lynx tied the game one last time, thanks to a layup from Bridget Carleton and then a pair of free throws from Napheesa Collier – who had a historic night of her own. However, that set up Ionescu’s winning shot and ultimately the three-point victory for the Liberty.

Stewart finished with 30 points and 11 rebounds while shooting 9 of 20 from the field. Ionescu had 13 points, six assists and five rebounds. She also shot just 3 of 8 from behind the arc.

Collier led the Lynx with 22 points and nine rebounds. She also surpassed Diana Taurasi’s single-season playoff points record, with a total of 249. Taurasi dropped 245 points during the 2009 playoffs. Kayla McBride added 19 points while making five 3-pointers, and Carleton finished with 14 points.

Game 4 of the series is scheduled for Friday evening. Despite being knocked out of the finals by the Las Vegas Aces last season, the Liberty now have a golden opportunity to take home the WNBA title for the first time.