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The New York Liberty lacked urgency in the first and fourth quarters on Saturday against the Indiana Fever, and they paid for it.
The Fever came away with the win, 83-78, one month after New York beat them by 36 in Brooklyn.
After the game, Sabrina Ionescu reflected on how her team's energy level was never going to be enough.
“This is their Super Bowl game,” she said of the Fever. “We’ve beaten them three times this year already. We knew they were going to come into this game really hungry and it’s tough to beat a team four times.”
The Fever deserve credit for some of the Liberty's miscues. Indiana seemed content with cutting New York off inside the arc, and the Liberty settled for too many threes. New York came into the game averaging 30 three-point attempts per game but took 42 on Saturday. They made just 10 (23.8%).
“We probably settled a little bit too much, but that was the shot that was open,” head coach Sandy Brondello admitted.
The Fever jumped out to an early double-digit lead, speeding the Liberty up on offense to force bad shots and gain opportunities in transition. Indiana led 24-12 after seven minutes.
In the fourth, the Liberty built a 10-point lead with 6:06 remaining. Then they took their foot off the gas. They rushed their shots and committed three turnovers in the final five minutes. None was more crucial than a backcourt violation from Betnijah Laney-Hamilton with 19 seconds to go.
With the Liberty down one, Ionescu missed a deep three. Laney-Hamilton corralled the rebound and brought the ball back out, but dribbled it off her foot. The entire possession was emblematic of the final minutes for New York.
“We missed a lot of shots, we had some turnovers that we’d like back,” Brondello said. “We need to make sure we bring the same focus for every opponent.”
Fever show that shutting down Jonquel Jones means shutting down the Liberty
The Liberty have lost five games, including the Commissioner’s Cup championship game, which does not count toward the standings. In those five games, Jonquel Jones averaged 7.6 points on 6.4 field goal attempts. In New York’s 17 wins, she put up 17.3 points on 10.8 attempts.
Shutting her down — and closing off the lane in general — means forcing the Liberty to make jumpers, which they have not been able to do consistently.
“We didn’t get [Jones] established as much,” Brondello said. “They were very active, even when she was on the perimeter. She was probably a little hesitant after she missed a few shots there and we want her to be very decisive.”
It’s a tough balance to strike. The Liberty have known all season that as Jones goes, so does the team. But if the opponent is hell-bent on limiting her opportunities, then the guards handling the ball need to adjust.
“That’s the tough part,” Ionescu said. “They were obviously taking away JJ, clogging up her roles and making it really difficult… So I think it’s just understanding what the defense is giving us and not trying to turn the ball over looking for something too hard, but understanding we just have to continue to find different ways to try to get her open. She’s really capable of dominating the paint but also spacing the floor.”
With Jones limited to six points and five attempts, Ionescu (22 points) and Laney-Hamilton (20) carried the scoring load, combining for 17 of the Liberty’s 29 made field goals. Everyone else was a combined 2-of-19 from three.
The Liberty will need more balance if they hope to beat the second-place Connecticut Sun next Wednesday. No matter what Connecticut does Sunday against the Dream, their game against New York will determine first place in the WNBA standings.
It’s the type of game where the Liberty will need that sense of urgency for 40 minutes.
