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He Freedom suffered their first loss of the season after the Chicago Sky beat New York, 90-81, at Barclays Center on Thursday night.
The Sky simply played tough, gritty ball like their head coach and Liberty legend. Teresa Weatherspoon. They outrebounded Liberty 38-35, 11-6 on the offensive boards, outscored New York in the paint 46-36 and turned the ball over less (9-14).
Here are the conclusions…
-The first half of Thursday’s game was probably the worst of Liberty’s young season. On both ends of the court, New York had a tough time. They turned the ball over eight times and the Sky turned that into seven points.
The Sky also took a 9-4 advantage in fast-break points in the first half and outscored the Liberty in the paint, 18-10. That didn’t help Jonquel Jones He was in foul trouble for most of the first half, picking up his third foul with five minutes left in the second quarter. In total, the Sky shot 40 percent in the first half, compared to 34 percent for New York. Chicago also benefited from the whistle. They shot 15 free throws to New York’s four in the first half.
Chicago had an 11-point lead at one point, the largest deficit the Liberty have had this season.
-Liberty turned things around in the third quarter, being aggressive to the basket and finally getting to the free throw line. They played fast and were in transition to get easy shots. They would take the lead early in the fourth quarter, their first since being 11-9, but the Sky would clamp down on defense to go on a 6-0 run to retake the lead with 6:30 left.
However, Liberty turnovers led to easy baskets by Sky and New York simply couldn’t stop. This was punctuated when Sky grabbed two offensive rebounds on one possession, leading to a Marina Mabrey triple to put Sky up by seven.
-Mabrey was in trouble early and the Liberty had no answers for her. Mabrey made her first four shots (two three-pointers) en route to 12 points in the half. She finished with 21 points on 8-of-13 shooting (3-8 from three) with six rebounds and seven assists.
Chicago had five players in double figures: Elizabeth Williams (17), Michaela Onyenwere (13), Chennedy Carter (12), Dana Evans (12) and rookie Angel Reese (13).
–Sabrina Ionescu It was the offensive spark Liberty needed, especially in the third quarter when they cut into the Sky lead. Ionescu took advantage of his elusiveness to get to the basket and make some circus shots. However, it was not enough, as Ionescu finished with 19 points on 8 of 19 shooting (2-7 on three-pointers) with four rebounds and six assists.
Breanna Stewart I didn’t have a regular Stewie game. Stewart finished with 18 points on 5-of-12 shooting with 10 rebounds, five assists, four steals and a block.
-Jones, playing through foul trouble, finished with eight points and four rebounds. Nyara Sabally He played 18 minutes off the bench for Jones and had six points, four rebounds and two assists.
Liberty’s bench was outscored 22-17.
Game MVP: Marina Mabrey
The Sky guard was surgical in her goal. Whether it was driving to the basket, a mid-range jumper, or a three-pointer, Mabrey did it all in this game. And his 3-pointer off an offensive rebound to give Chicago some breathing room was a gut punch from which New York couldn’t recover.
Reflexes
Whats Next
The Liberty will hit the road to take on the Minnesota Lynx on Saturday. The start is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.
