Liberty 81, Sun 65: Scratching the surface
The Liberty rode a dominant second half to a win in Connecticut over the previously unbeaten Sun
I’ve made a lot of changes in my life recently: moved home to South Carolina, took on a new full-time job and quit drinking. But as cemented as all of those decisions may be, it will take time to check off each one as fulfilled and reflected in my day-to-day. Soon I’ll have a place of my own, so I can say I moved home, independent of a family member’s roof over my head. My first day at my new job will turn into the second day, then the third, and so on. And my sobriety will at some point become a habit, as opposed to a conscious decision I’m making every minute of every hour of every day.
I thought about all of this as I took a seat and turned on yesterday afternoon’s matinee between the Connecticut Sun and New York Liberty. Watching the WNBA – and writing about it – is, too, a change of pace. For the better, I’d add. What’s best described as a tale of two halves for the Liberty started off with some good looks but empty possessions.
So, as contenders do, Connecticut took advantage early on the defensive glass, leading to a number of quality looks for guard Tiffany Hayes, who poured in seven early.
Turnovers persisted for New York, who found themselves down 38-32 at the half having committed eight giveaways to the Sun’s four. But after intermission the Liberty came out firing, with Sabrina Ionescu hitting a three just 38 seconds into the third quarter.
Minutes later Breanna Stewart followed that up with a running three of her own, capping off an 8-1 run to open the half. New York never really looked back, outscoring Connecticut 41-24 the rest of the way – including nearly five minutes of what’s best described as garbáge time.
Notes
If you could streamline Ionescu’s decision-making, I’m about 99% sure you’d end up with the best player in basketball. She is such a natural up and down the floor, constantly in tune with the flow of the game. Ionescu finished with 17 points, seven rebounds and (somehow only) three assists in 31+ minutes.
Shoutout to Nyara Sabally, the fifth overall pick in the 2022 WNBA Draft, who in her league debut finished with six points and three rebounds in just under 14 minutes of play; the Liberty were +11 with her on the floor. Her defense was most impressive, including this closeout possession to end the first half:
Stewart had the quietest six-steal, four-block performance I may have ever seen, to go along with 21 points and five assists. Her versatility remains unmatched on both ends of the floor, putting her atop the must-watch power rankings in my book:
CV3, anyone? From start to finish Courtney Vandersloot was the best player in this game, taking advantage of open looks and open passing lanes aplenty.
Her chemistry with Stewart is certainly something to watch, too.
Shoutout to Han Xu for her putback bucket in garbáge time. Fans chanted her name towards the end of the fourth, and apparently grabbed some selfies postgame:
Other unsung heroes include Betnijah Laney, who won’t pop off of the stat sheet but can hang her head high on a winning performance centered on the little things: two points, four rebounds, an assist and a steal in 27 minutes.
Prior to the 2023 season’s start, the Liberty made a number of changes, and their performance against the Sun was indicative of a team still feeling things out. Stewart, fresh off of a 45-point explosion in her last outing, scored only six on 3 of 8 shooting in the first half before finding her rhythm in the second. Vandersloot, who left her only ever WNBA home of 12 years in Chicago to join Stewart on the Liberty, was brilliant, finishing with 18 points, 10 assists and 6 rebounds. But she had a team-high – and uncharacteristic – four turnovers in her 34 minutes. Jonquel Jones is working off the rust that comes with injury rehab. She substituted out of this one with over six minutes left in the fourth and was not to be seen again. Jones finished her third game in New York with more fouls than made field goals. As for Ionsecu, the and heart and soul of this Liberty team, she’s still working through her 3-point celebrations:
Perhaps she’s borrowing from the wrong franchise. I can think of four good celebrations that were established by the neighboring New York Knickerbockers.
Two wins in three games is a great sign for the New York superteam hopefuls, but this group of individuals can’t yet call themselves a cohesive unit, at least not on the hardwood. What have been six very different halves of basketball should eventually transition to four-quarter standards once all the ongoing changes become the norm. The Liberty are only just scratching the surface.
