The New York Liberty led the Minnesota Lynx by 15 points with just over five minutes remaining on Thursday night.

They were coming off the back of a win over the defending champion Las Vegas Aces, on home court, and enjoyed a rest advantage.

The Lynx celebrate a historic victory

So few people would have predicted anything but New York taking a 1-0 series lead in the WNBA finals.

The Lynx were available at +5000 and ESPN’s win predictor gave them a 0.8% chance of winning.

But this is professional sports, where scripts are made to be ignored.

Two-time Finals MVP Breanna Stewart missed a layup as the buzzer sounded and New York lost 95-93.

All 17,732 fans in the Barclays Center could not believe their eyes.

Minnesota trailed by 18 in the second quarter, making it the joint-biggest comeback in Finals history.

WNBA teams were 0-183 when down 15 or more with five minutes remaining in the postseason.

“I think it defines our team in terms of being able to get through difficult times,” Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve said.

“That’s what we are talking about. You have to be mentally tough and resilient.

“You have to look inward and not blame other people, and give each other confidence.

Minnesota trailed by 18 points an the second quarter

The Liberty will need to bounce back

“And we were that team. Thrilled that we could hang in there.”

The Lynx seem to have New York’s number this year with a 4-1 record.

Two more victories will secure the Finals over a talented roster featuring Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu.

“We know it’s a long series,” Reeve added.

“Nothing is won in the first quarter. It was not the first quarter that we were hoping for.

“What our narrative was in the timeouts was just we had to find our footing.

“Find our footing defensively, and we did the second quarter.

“We held them to 12 after giving up 32. We went into halftime in good shape.”

Game 2 is in New York on Sunday.