MINNEAPOLIS — It’s fitting that a record-breaking season for the WNBA would come down to a winner-take-all Game 5 of its Finals.

For the first time since 2019, the league championship will go the distance. This one will be in New York today.

The Minnesota Lynx staved off elimination with an 82-80 win over the New York Liberty on Friday night to force the fifth game.

“I think that, you know, for our team, we bounce back after a loss really, really well, and making sure that everybody is on the same page going forward,” Liberty star Breanna Stewart said. “In the playoffs, in a series, there’s going to be momentum shifts. There were momentum shifts in the game tonight. But mentally, understanding what’s our ultimate goal, how are things going right here.

“Like (coach) Sandy (Brondello) said in the locker room, we haven’t won anything yet; we haven’t lost anything yet. And we have the opportunity to do that Sunday.”

The first four games of the series have come down to the last few possessions and have included an overtime game and a last-second shot, which have led to record ratings. The first three games each had over a million viewers on average, with the audience growing for each contest. They also have had huge crowds in attendance.

History will be on the line for both teams today. Minnesota stands one victory away from a record fifth WNBA title, which would break a tie with the Houston Comets and Seattle Storm. The Liberty are looking for their first title and have lost in the Finals five times. The team was one of the original eight franchises when the league began in 1997 and is the only one left of that group not to have won it all.

Since the league switched to a best-of-5 format in 2005, seven other series have gone the distance. The home team has won five of those contests, including in 2019.

Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve was involved in three straight Game 5s from 2015-17 with the Lynx. She won two of them.