The present for the Liberty may sting for awhile, but their future remains bright.
It was a heck of a season for the New York Liberty.
They’re young, exciting, well-coached, and have one of the league’s best players leading them into the future.
The experience, however, remains a work in progress. There’s still lessons to learn before taking the next step.
For the Liberty’s 2022 postseason, school was in session with the defending WNBA Champions, the Chicago Sky, as the teachers.
It took for a deciding Game 3, Tuesday night at Barclays Center, for the No. 2 seed Sky to eliminate the No. 7 seed Liberty.
Candace Parker had 14 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists to lead Chicago to a 90-72 win. With the victory, the Sky advance to the semifinal round.
Chicago has now won four consecutive elimination contests dating to back-to-back single-elimination games last year en route to the franchise’s first WNBA championship.
For the Liberty, the experience of their opponents was the difference in this series. Allie Quigley and Kahleah Copper each added 15 points while Courtney Vandersloot had 14 points and 10 assists.
Chicago is battled-tested, gritty, and showed in this series how mentally tough a team they are.
After the Liberty stole Game 1 on the road, the Sky routed them by a WNBA playoffs record 38 points in the second game.
With Game 3 set on win or go home, the Sky tapped into their championship mettle.
“We knew what we had to do. They were all on a mission and you could tell it was a collective mission,” Chicago coach James Wade said. “We decided it was go-time and show what we were made of and responded in Game 2 and built on it after that.”
The Liberty scored the first seven points of the fourth quarter, fueled by the face of their team, Sabrina Ionescu. In front of a sold-out lower bowl of Barclays Center, the Liberty pulled to within 68-65.
Chicago, however, shifted into an extra gear by scoring the next 16 points, including consecutive 3-pointers by Quigley to end the run and put the game away with just over 4 minutes left.
“(Chicago) is a really good team, see the chemistry the have,” New York coach Sandy Brondello said. “They have poise and they made plays and we couldn’t. We rushed a few shots when they made some plays. Proud of these girls, proud of this team. The more experienced team won tonight.”
Betnijah Laney scored 15 points and Ionescu and Natasha Howard each had 14 for the Liberty.
For the Liberty, this was their first home playoff game since 2017. It was the team’s first home playoff game in Barclays Center.
While the ending wasn’t what the Liberty were looking for, their 2022 season was a step in the right direction.
Ionescu, this past July, made her first All-Star appearance. Her third season in the league proved to be her first complete one — fully healthy. Moreover, Howard Howard made her first All-Star team since 2019.
Brondello, in her first season coaching the Liberty, was steady with her credibility helping lay the groundwork for the future of this franchise.
Additionally, center Han Xu and guard Marine Johannes flashed plenty of promise this season in their respective roles.
Main Image: Wendell Cruz/USA TODAY Sports
Anthony Rushing is on Twitter @TonyRushingNY
Baseline Sports NY is on Twitter @Baseline_NY
