New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart called out the referees after their loss to the Atlanta Dream in overtime, 101-98, in Game 2 of their semifinals series on Wednesday. Stewart said the referees told her that they did not have a reset timeout in overtime, only to find out after the game that they had one.

Because the Liberty could not advance the ball to the frontcourt in their final possession, Stewart was forced to make a desperation heave from way outside. She missed, allowing the Dream to escape and take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five clash.

According to a report from The Athletic's Annie Costabile, New York urged the WNBA to examine the incident.

“The Liberty filed an inquiry to the league to review the call, according to a source with knowledge of the decision who spoke on the condition of anonymity,” wrote Costabile.

Costabile also shared the pool report released by the WNBA regarding the controversy. Fatou Cissoko-Stephens, the lead official, belied Stewart's claim.

“Stewart was standing behind referee (Kevin) Fahy when he confirmed with his partner in between (Angel) Reese's penalty free throws that the Liberty did indeed have a reset (timeout) remaining,” said Cissoko-Stephens.

The official pool report shared by the WNBA at 1:05 AM. pic.twitter.com/zTPak7SIg2

— Annie Costabile (@AnnieCostabile) October 8, 2026

A reset timeout in the WNBA is a special stoppage in the last two minutes of a game that allows a team to advance the ball to the frontcourt and make substitutions, but forbids any bench huddle. Each team gets one in regulation and one in overtime.

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Cissoko-Stephens admitted that there was “no direct communication” with the referees and the Liberty regarding the reset timeout.

“Available timeouts are tracked by the scorer's table and statistical staff. Teams are responsible for managing and tracking their timeout usage,” added Cissoko-Stephens.

Coach Chris DeMarco said the referees told them that they did not have a reset timeout.