New York Liberty scrape by Washington Mystics, 90-79
Photo by Catalina Fragoso/NBAE via Getty Images
In a near repeat of Wednesday's win, the Liberty jumped out to a big lead only to watch it slip away before ultimately pulling out the victory. Down the stretch of the New York Liberty’s tight Wednesday night win over the Phoenix Mercury, Kayla Thornton was inserted into the game, playing with four starters in place of Courtney Vandersloot. And while Vandersloot ultimately re-entered the game, even coming up with a huge crunch-time steal, it was Sabrina Ionescu who made that previous lineup possible.
She assumed the entirety of New York’s ball-handling duties with Sloot on the bench, allowing Sandy Brondello to play a longer, more physical lineup.
“Sabrina, she can do it all, a great shooter and nearly had ten assists, she had nine assists here, and that’s what she brings,” said Brondello. “She made some really big plays for us, and she has that ability to facilitate. Yeah, that’s a luxury that we have.”
A luxury it was not on Friday night, but rather a necessity. Vandersloot was a late scratch with back tightness against the Washington Mystics, thrusting Thornton into the starting lineup and the ball into Ionescu’s hands.
Each responded accordingly, and were New York’s only two double-digit scorers in the first half, after which the Libs lead 49-45.
Initially, the score looked like it was going to be a lot more lop-sided than that, as the Mystics were treated to a heater by the home team to open the night. Thornton made two early triples while contributing to New York’s swarming defense in the paint, while Ionescu played the point guard role perfectly.
She dished the rock and got all the way to the rim when necessary...
Great full-court lefty take from Sab...certainly the best her ball-handling has looked pic.twitter.com/4np0aH0zGI— Lucas Kaplan (@LucasKaplan_) May 31, 2024
...but was on fire from deep, continually backing up farther beyond the arc until ending the first quarter with a 30-foot moonball...
YOOO SAB'S IN HER BAG ALREADY BIG triple from @sabrina_i20 pic.twitter.com/ekahnxUEfz— New York Liberty (@nyliberty) May 31, 2024
“I think in that first quarter, when they’re in a drop coverage, it was my ability to just be able to come off, read the defense, either get to the basket or shoot,” said Ionescu.
She also called her ability to penetrate the defense with a live dribble “something that I worked on a lot in this offseason. Just being able to use my body and being able to create for us going downhill, knowing how important paint touches are for our shooters.”
It was reminiscent of her hot start against Phoenix a game earlier, but unfortunately for the Libs, so too was their second quarter.
For the second straight game, an early double-digit lead dwindled to a couple possessions by halftime, as New York’s offense just couldn’t sustain their pace. Breanna Stewart got her shots off but couldn’t convert many, and Jonquel Jones was an offensive non-factor after making her first three of the game.
Even Ionescu slipped a bit on her way to five turnovers on the night, occasionally too late in getting the ball to the other side of the court...
Sab up to four TO's, and I think three of 'em have been pretty similar. Not skipping the ball cross-court quickly enough, here trying to dribble through traffic: pic.twitter.com/Rqg4QFSaBV— Lucas Kaplan (@LucasKaplan_) June 1, 2024
On the other end, Washington competed in a way that their film suggested they would, even if their 0-7 record wouldn’t. After getting stifled by New York’s help at the rim in the first quarter, they ran far more empty-side pick-and-rolls in the second quarter, allowing ball-handlers Julie Vanloo and Jade Melbourne off the bench to get downhill while Ariel Atkins, who led Washington with 15 points, got busy from three.
“I don’t know, you got any ideas?” replied a half-joking Brondello when asked how to prevent New York’s recent fumbling of leads.
She continued: “I yelled at them a little bit, you know? You just got to like demand excellence, then I heard after the game Las Vegas lost; this is a really strong league. It doesn’t matter about the wins and losses, they compete. Washington’s had only one loss in double figures.”
The similarities to Wednesday’s tilt would continue, as the Liberty and their opponent would remain in a dead heat until the game’s final moments.
Jonquel Jones once again got going out of the break, scoring nine of her 16 in the third quarter, in part a result of Washington starting to trap Ionescu off screens. Her 16/10/3 stat-line would have been even more impressive had she not shot 1-of-5 from the line; the Liberty has a whole shot just 23-of-31 from the stripe, though some misses in the third quarter helped keep a whistle-filled game close. Washington did miss six free-throws of their own.
But unlike Wednesday, neither Jones nor Ionescu would be New York’s hero in the fourth quarter. It wouldn’t be Stewart either; she shot just 4-of-13 though did make ten freebies to score 18 to go with a whopping 15 boards. Betnijah Laney-Hamilton, despite joining the rest of the starters by playing over 32 minutes, was quiet altogether, posting just 8/2/2.
No, the hero who stepped up for New York was, fittingly, Kayla Thornton, who ended the game the same way she started it to finish with 20 points, four assists, and five steals, every one of which the Liberty needed.
When they were floundering around to start the fourth, Thornton pushed their lead to three points with this steal and go...
Kayla Thornton has been HUGE tonight, here's her fourth steal of the game: pic.twitter.com/ZpGbPLxpmA— Lucas Kaplan (@LucasKaplan_) June 1, 2024
...and then with the Libs up four looking to put the game away, she hit her 4th 3-pointer of the night, immediately followed by another steal on the other end, a two way sequence that served as the dagger.
Everybody sung Thornton’s praises after the game.
“It’s really hard to stay ready. That’s a mindset you have to have. There are some games KT hasn’t played a lot, and then tonight, 20 points and five steals ... She sacrifices a lot to stay on this team, and we understand that.” — Sabrina Ionescu.
“KT just never backed down. And that was the toughness that we needed, and I’m happy. I’m really happy for her because she stayed ready ... she’s the ultimate professional, and you love that.” — Sandy Brondello.
“I was really happy that KT was coming here, because she’s, uh, a bitch to play against, excuse my language.” — Breanna Stewart, on the moment New York signed Thornton.
Some quasi-garbage time free-throws widened the gap, and the sea foam would end the game on a 16-4 run behind another jumping home crowd.
Don't be fooled by the double-digit disparity, though; the Mystics played tough, and once again, Shakira Austin’s defense on Stewart was superb. Meanwhile, the Liberty were often gashed by simple pick-and-roll actions, leading to a 40-to-26 disparity in points in the paint, in favor of Washington.
Friday night was not a perfect win for the Liberty, regardless of Washington’s winless status entering the game. But does the perfect win even exist?
For now, the Liberty are 6-2 while gearing up for Commissioner’s Cup play, and while they're not where they ultimately want to be, as Sabrina Ionescu pointed out post-game, “you have to win ugly.”
Final Score: New York Liberty 90, Washington Mystics 79
Injury Update
Our first one of the year, unfortunately. While Vandersloot’s injury is not thought to be serious, more of a precaution with Cup play coming up, Nyara Sabally did leave the game after coming down awkwardly on a play late in the first half.
While Sabally did finish the second quarter, her usual spot in the rotation was filled by Kennedy Burke in the second half. Postgame, Brondello confirmed this was due to Sabally’s injury.
She then added that Sabally, “had a bit of a muscle spasm in her back when she took that fall. Hopefully she’ll be okay, I haven’t spoken to the medical staff yet.”
Should she miss time, it would be a tough blow to a Liberty bench that combined for just four points on Friday night, a bench that has enjoyed steady production from Sabally as the third big.
Next Up
Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images
Caitlin Clark is back in town for the Indiana Fever’s second and final visit to the Barclays Center this season. I recently wrote an in-depth analysis of how Indiana’s offense is doing with Clark at the helm, if you’re interested in such a thing.
This will be the final home-game for the Liberty before starting a three-game road trip. Tip-off is scheduled for Sunday evening at 7:30 p.m. ET.
Box Score: New York Liberty 90, Washington Mystics 79 - WNBA
Game Highlights: New York Liberty 90, Washington Mystics 79 (Video) - WNBA
Ionescu scores 24, Thornton 20 and Liberty close out Mystics 90-79 - AP
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