Courtney Williams says "the fire is there" for the Minnesota Lynx every time they face the New York Liberty after their WNBA Finals defeat last year.
The Lynx lost to the Liberty in five games in the 2024 Finals but got their third win in a row against them this year after a comeback 86-80 win on Saturday.
Williams scored a season-high 26 points, while Alanna Smith recorded 10 of her 14 points in the fourth quarter, at the start of which Minnesota were trailing by six points.
Kayla McBride and Jessica Shephard both contributed 17 points, with the latter also getting 10 rebounds to finish with a double-double, as the Lynx earned their sixth straight win, and fourth without leading scorer Napheesa Collier.
The Lynx remain at the top of the WNBA standings after their 28th win of the season, but New York have now fallen a half-game back of the Atlanta Dream for second place.
And Williams explained how she is constantly motivated to beat New York, no matter how many wins they have earned since the Finals.
"The fire is there — they beat us last year," Williams told reporters after the game.
"I don't need more ammunition. I don't like them. I love them as people… but when it comes to basketball, no, it's nothing.
"I don't want them to win. I don't care who they play. I want them to lose. They beat us.
"That's competitive nature. It's not personal, it's competitive. Y'all beat us, so I want you to lose everything."
Williams seemed to gain attention from the opposing fans due to some trash talking during the game, but head coach Cheryl Reeve shrugged it off and believes it helped her step up her performance.
"It's my understanding that Courtney may have poked the bear a little bit on the other side with some words on a stream that they do," she said.
"So you don't go from a Birkin bag to a Target bag. So she had to back that up."
