The Liberty ended the primary half of the season on a excessive notice.
Dealing with an Indiana Fever crew that was with out Caitlin Clark, the Liberty cruised to a 98-77 victory at Barclays Heart on Wednesday evening behind considered one of their most well-rounded performances of the yr.
Breanna Stewart led the way in which with 24 factors on 10-of-15 capturing, 11 rebounds, seven assists and 4 blocks. Sabrina Ionescu added 15 factors and a season-high 9 assists, a number of of which got here on highlight-worthy passes.
“Usually the games when you’re leaving or you’re going to something are the hardest, because there’s so much happening,” Stewart mentioned. “You’re packing. You’ve got this tomorrow. You’ve got that tomorrow. I wanted to set the tone and really focus in.”
Stewart and Ionescu are set to symbolize the Liberty at Saturday evening’s WNBA All-Star Recreation in Indianapolis, and so they regarded the half in Wednesday’s rout.
Ionescu drilled a pair of 3-pointers and made a troublesome reverse lay-up throughout a 10-point first quarter. Ionescu, who is about to compete in Friday evening’s 3-point contest in Indy, went 3-of-9 from behind the arc.
Stewart had 5 assists within the first quarter and repeatedly acquired into the lane for simple baskets, together with on a third-quarter minimize by which the right-handed Ionescu discovered her with a lefty bounce cross.
“Just taking what the defense gives me,” mentioned Stewart, who completed with 5 lay-ups. “If it’s going to be like tonight, I’m going to try and get the basket every single time because it’s so open. Another night might be more on the perimeter or dishing to my teammates.”
That pair fueled a Liberty offense that shot 57.8% from the sector and went 14-of-27 (51.9%) on 3-pointers.
The Liberty’s uptempo assault proved to be an excessive amount of for a Fever crew on the second leg of a back-to-back, as did a Liberty protection that blocked 9 pictures and held Indiana to 14 factors within the second quarter. Throughout that second quarter, the Liberty unleashed a 19-8 run that put the sport out of attain.
Clark was dominated out about two hours earlier than tip-off with a proper groin damage, which she suffered within the remaining minute of Tuesday’s win over the Connecticut Solar.
The 23-year-old Clark underwent imaging Wednesday and is taken into account day-to-day. The sharp-shooting sensation has missed 11 video games this season, having beforehand sat out with left quad and left groin accidents.
The Fever (12-11) struggled Wednesday with out Clark, whose elite scoring and play-making — her 8.8 assists per sport rank second within the WNBA — command appreciable defensive consideration and open up Indiana’s offense.
Indiana shot simply 36.8% from the sector and 25% from 3-point vary. Kelsey Mitchell led Indiana with 16 factors on 5-of-11 capturing, whereas the Liberty restricted fellow All-Star Aliyah Boston to seven factors on 1-of-8 capturing.
The Liberty enter the All-Star break at 15-6, the second-best file within the WNBA. They path the Minnesota Lynx (20-4) by 3.5 video games for the highest seed.
Wednesday’s win capped a roller-coaster first half for the defending champion Liberty, who jumped out to a franchise-best 9-0 begin however endured a chilly stretch after star heart Jonquel Jones suffered a proper ankle damage.
The Liberty are 8-1 with Jones within the lineup and 7-5 with out her.
“There’s no pointing fingers. It’s taking ownership of what we need to be better [at]. Our culture’s strong, and that’s what you need,” Liberty coach Sandy Brondello mentioned earlier than Wednesday’s sport.
“When you face adversity, you’re going to [learn] about your team and how you respond to the highs and lows of a normal season. I think we’ve been very professional in the way that we approach day in and day out. We know there’s areas to work on.”
After a 2-5 stretch, the Liberty have gained three video games in a row.
“We were losing some of those games ourselves,” Ionescu mentioned. “We were not coming out with the right energy. We were not playing Liberty basketball, and there was just this realization of, ‘If we just settle into doing that, we’re in a really good spot.’ Sandy continued to keep us together, which, in a time like that, can make or break teams.”
Jones expects to return when the Liberty open the second half on Tuesday with one other sport in opposition to the Fever at Barclays Heart.
Initially Revealed: July 16, 2025 at 9:46 PM EDT
