The New York Liberty carried over some fireworks from the holiday weekend, setting personal, team, and league records in a win over Las Vegas.
The New York Liberty were forced into the late shift on Wednesday night leading into Brooklyn’s Thursday morning. But, in one of Frank Sinatra’s most popular haunts, they represented the City That Never Sleeps in historic, record-breaking fashion.
The third triple-double of Sabrina Ionescu’s WNBA career (and second this season) headlined an endless list of accolades for the Liberty, who took down the league-leading Las Vegas Aces by a 116-107 final at Michelob Ultra Arena. Ionescu’s 31 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists ties her with Candace Parker for the most triple-doubles in WNBA history. Right behind her in the affair was Han Xu, who put in 24 points on 11-of-12 shooting off the bench.
Ionescu’s 10 helpers were part of a 35-assist effort for New York, which tied an Association single-game record set by the 2017 Minnesota Lynx and 2018 Chicago Sky. Her scoring tally was also the first 30-point effort in a triple-double, part of a single-game record 116 for the Liberty. Her seven successful three-pointers tied an individual team record and was part of more league history: the Liberty’s 18 triples are, again, tied for the most in a single WNBA game, joining the modern Aces and two other teams.
“We haven’t scored 100 points all season long. We’re happy to get over 80 most days,” Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello said with a smile in the aftermath. “Sabrina, I mean, what can you say? She’s so deserving of it and I’m so happy for her because she works so hard … She’s one of the most tough-minded players that I know, that can come out and do what she does. We put a lot on her shoulders, but she’s ready to take over.”
The endless list of accolades, however, was almost meaningless to the Liberty, who would’ve been happy to leave Las Vegas with a mere victory. New York (9-12) had fallen out of the WNBA’s active playoff bracket with heartbreaking losses in each of their last two games, including a 92-81 overtime decision to Atlanta last Thursday in Brooklyn that capped off an otherwise lucrative June (going 7-4 despite missing All-Star Betnijah Laney and starter Jocelyn Willoughby after a 1-7 start).
Ionescu, for example was able to enjoy her triple-double this time around after her previous, a 27-point, 13-rebound, 12 assists against Chicago on June 12 ended in a heartbreaking 88-86 loss. She, however, opted for one more assist, passing credit to her teammates instead.
“To me as long as we win, it doesn’t matter,” the point guard said of her statistical accomplishments. “I’m just trying to be the best that I can every time I step out on the floor. It’s me versus me. I’m just trying to continue to get better, continue to learn from all the situations that I’ve been put in.”
“My teammates are putting me in good positions, my coaching staff is putting me in great positions. I wouldn’t be able to get triple-doubles without the help from my teammates.”
Further heartbreak appeared to await the Liberty in Sin City after a high-octane first half put them on the wrong end of a 63-55 scoreboard. Still without the services of Laney, Willoughby, and Bec Allen (who was removed from Sunday’s game in Los Angeles for concussion analysis), the Liberty allowed Las Vegas to sink 11 three-pointers over the first 20 minutes. The Aces’ early prowess negated the Liberty’s own 9-of-16 showing from deep that included a perfect five-attempt output from Ionescu.
Las Vegas (15-7) took a 10-point lead in the third quarter, but a 14-5 Liberty run over the final 3:08 of the frame set the stage for a historic period. The Aces even threatened to pull away at the onset of the final stanza, bolstered by Jackie Young’s successful and-one opportunity that made it a six-point game. But a 9-0 run consisting entirely of points from the arms of Han and Natasha Howard (18 points, 6 rebounds) gave the Liberty a permanent lead and set the pace for a 33-23 advantage that created the final margin. The Aces sank only two more three-pointers after their torrid start, and the Liberty, thanks in part to major minutes from DiDi Richards (who started the second half in place of Crystal Dangerfield) held them to 38 percent from the field in the latter 20 (12-of-32).
“We’ve lost two very winnable games this month, so we’re continuing to battle and continuing to get better,” Ionescu said of the message a win like Wednesday’s sends. “A game like this is huge for us going into all-star break … (it’s) kind of a nod to us, that we’re continuing to get better, we’re doing the right things. We lost two close ones that we really wish we could get back. But I think, as long as we’re getting better, we still have half a season left to turn this around and keep growing.”
“The way that Vegas plays, we knew that we’d have opportunities to put some points on the board. It was more about when we could stop them and slow them down. We didn’t do a great job in that first half, (allowing) 63 points,” Brondello noted. “We didn’t defend the three-point line well and, in the second half, that’s what it was about. We just had a little more sense of urgency. We played the personnel way better.”
Liberty getting more from Han Xu
Han fell just short of a WNBA milestone in her career-best scoring effort, as she was less than a minute away from becoming just the third player in league history to attempt at least 10 from the field without a miss. She missed her penultimate attempt but immediately put it back in on her career-best tying eighth rebound. Sinking her first 10 attempts nonetheless set a team record.
“The key to success is to move the ball. What Sabrina is doing on the court is amazing. (Our) passing the ball and handling is amazing,” Han said in equally selfless statements through translator Cindy Chen. “Everybody did prove that we we can get better and that’s how we won this game.”
Stefanie Dolson and Marine Johannes also reached double-figures for the Liberty with 11 each, with the latter also earning a career-best nine assists.
Brondello on Hammon…
Wednesday’s matchup with the Aces was the Liberty’s first against head coach Becky Hammon. The former San Antonio Spurs assistant is one of seven names inducted into the Liberty’s Ring of Honor and also played under Brondello’s watch during their shared tenure with the Aces’ retired San Antonio Silver Stars identity.
“I coached Becky Hammon in San Antonio, so I know her really well. She’s a fierce competitor,” Brondello said of Hammon during her pregame availability. “She gives her players a lot of freedom … I think that certainly helped the players play as well as they are.”
A’ja Wilson briefly left the game after a physical encounter with Richards but returned to post 29 points and nine rebound. Young was right behind her with 24 tallies. Both Howard and Ionescu will be play for a drafted team captained and curated by Wilson in the upcoming WNBA All-Star Game in Chicago this Sunday afternoon. Wilson will be joined by her Vegas teammates Kelsey Plum and Dearica Hamby, while Young was chosen by the opposing team led by Seattle’s Breanna Stewart.
With their loss, Las Vegas lost control of its Commissioner’s Cup destiny, as a win would’ve situated the in-season competition’s championship game at home. The defending WNBA Finals champion Sky can now clinch homecourt with a win on Thursday against Indiana.
The Aces won’t have to wait long for potential revenge against the Liberty, as they’ll visit Brooklyn for a two-game set on July 12 and 14.
Up Next
The Liberty hardly get a minute to bask in their historic night, as another Western showdown awaits on Thursday night in Phoenix (10 p.m. ET, The YES App) before they head into the All-Star break. The Mercury (9-14) have had to muscle their way through a tumultuous season, recently divorcing themselves from the contract of former Liberty star Tina Charles. Phoenix has dropped its last two including a narrow 78-75 decision in Las Vegas on Monday night.
Main Image: Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images
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