MINNEAPOLIS – Somehow this will come to an end, although your guess is as good as mine. In Game 4 on Friday night, the Lynx and Liberty arrived at a familiar place in an unfamiliar way. Neither team bothered to fake an early lead or a deficit. This time they played a game that stayed true to the series from tip to buzzer: strange, tense, more a matter of execution than scheme. A layup by Jonquel Jones to tie the score (80:80) with one minute left was the 13th draw of the game. With 18 seconds left, the Lynx were looking for one last shot, Bridget Carleton grabbed an offensive rebound and was fouled attempting the putback. She made two free throws for the 14th and final lead change, 82-80. The WNBA's two best teams head to where they've long seemed destined: a crucial Game 5 in New York on Sunday night.

Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve explained the game's proximity to the “information gathered.” Game 5 will be the ninth time these teams have faced off this season, and the familiarity is starting to show. “Everything is getting harder,” Reeve said. “There are no secrets at this point.” The teams' de facto captains, products of the same college program and exemplars of the league's wealth of power forwards, present identical matchup problems for each other. The leading guards can secure crowning moments. Last night the two starting centers traded threes. Styles may be about fighting, but never neglect the thrill of an exciting Spider-Man series.

Strip away the advantages these teams enjoyed in the regular season — their roving and disruptive defensive leaders, their mobile bigs, their spacing, their depth — and what are you left with? A series was decided entirely on the margin, on the basis of a rebound, a missed bunt, a turnover or a hard shot. Close games are everyone's fault and ours. For all the legitimate, legitimate attention to the star duels in this series, my Game 4 notes are littered with names of standout role players and substitutes: Leo Fiebich, Ceci Zandalasini, Dorka Juhász, Nyara Sabally. Whatever you think will make the difference in Game 5, you're right.

Maybe it's fatigue. Almost every player in the postseason is playing the longest postseason of their WNBA career after one of the longest regular seasons of their careers. (The “off day” between Games 4 and 5 is also a travel day.) Alanna Smith played some fantastic late-game possessions and heavy minutes despite her injury, but is still moving noticeably slower. Collier and Stewart have both spent a lot of energy strengthening their teams' defenses; It's hard not to draw a connection between Stewart's stellar defense and her 5-for-21 shooting night caused by the complete lack of legs.

Maybe it's the officials who tend to make their presence felt at WNBA games. If any moment felt particularly exciting in these finals, it was thanks to Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello, who could look perky when told her house had burned down. After Friday's game, she used a question that more or less said, “Talk about how good your players are” as an opportunity to address the game's free throw disparity — the Lynx had 20 attempts at the line, the Liberty had nine . (I didn't like a few early calls against Stewart and Jones, although Stewart then had to commit three fouls between her fourth and fifth fouls.) “I'm one of the nicest coaches in this league, but this is getting on my nerves,” Brondello said and brought the whole room into an uproar. “Just be fair. If they get hit, it’s a damn foul.” She alluded to her counterpart’s follow-up work at the press conference. After Game 3, Reeve had brought up differences in the way she felt Stewart and Collier were officiating.

Brondello had another regret, another moment that could have made the difference when the game was still tied at 80-80 with 30 seconds left. After Jonquel Jones missed a mid-range fadeaway, Stewart ripped off Kayla McBride's offensive rebound with almost all the energy she had left. Brondello said she tried to call a timeout afterward, but the referees never heard her. Stewart kicked the ball to Ionescu to reset it, but it ended up back in her hands and the possession ended in a shot clock violation when Stewart's turnaround attempt missed the rim. “Everyone could have done better,” Brondello said, about to scandalize the room again, “including me, who got that damn timeout.” But then, as Jones lovingly patted her on the shoulder, Brondello apologized for swearing . A series can only contain so many surprises.