The New York Liberty hosted Pride Night at the Barclays Center on Friday night. If that wasn’t enough, the Liberty were once again facing last year’s playoff foe in the Phoenix Mercury, just as they had on Wednesday night when they notched their most inspiring win of the season to date.
So yes, 16,000 Liberty fans were commensurately lit for the rematch. The first half might have dimmed their spirits. Chris DeMarco’s squad made 13 field goals and committed 11 turnovers before the break, and somehow, the home team took a 34-31 lead into the break. Friday marked the Liberty’s fifth game in nine days, and the Mercury have been away from home for over a week, and it seemed like both teams were eager for a rest.
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Fortunately, DeMarco had nearly the whole rotation at his disposal. Sabrina Ionescu missed her third straight game with a back issue (and neither Marine Fauthoux nor Anneli Maley, on development contracts, were activated), but everybody else was available. Notably, Leonie Fiebich got the start over Satou Sabally…
Aside from two-and-a-half Rebecca Allen minutes in the first half, DeMarco went nine deep in this one. Sabally only scored four points in ten minutes off the bench, though postgame she was all smiles: “It feels good. I mean, it’s always nice to play basketball, and I’m just thankful that I’m in a position to do so.”
The game was a slog, but the Liberty were clearly outplaying an uninspiring Phoenix squad despite the close score. Betnijah Laney-Hamilton scored nine of her 13 points in the first half, hitting two threes to lead the Liberty despite coming off the bench. And when New York avoided foul trouble, their defense was tremendous; they’d hold the Mercury to 34% shooting from the floor in this one, their best mark of the young season.
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In the third quarter, they even hit some jumpers; Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones scored nine points apiece and shot a combined 6-of-18, but they each made a three out of the break, and so did Han Xu, who also scored nine off the bench. Han played 17 minutes in this one and has given the Libs all they could ask from her during this homestand. She is taller than everybody else and has real shooting touch; her (frequent) willingness to let it fly keeps her on the court, and she shot 4-of-7 in this one…
New York finished with 19 turnovers; they never got that problem under control. But they never surrendered their slim lead; the players came up with just enough defensive stops, while DeMarco and his staff found just the right combinations down the stretch.
When asked how to avoid turnovers moving forward, DeMarco said, “Some of it is going to be on us, you know, putting everyone in the correct environment to be able to make plays. And then some of it, I think, is just finding combinations. Again, I talk about it all the time: New lineups, new players coming on, you’re just not used to each other yet. You have to give Phoenix credit; they made adjustments to be aggressive, and they turned us over, but I was just proud of how gritty we were and how we fought back.”
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In the second half, DeMarco played the right lineups, making some tough decisions along the way. Marine Johannès played the first four minutes of the second half and did not return, while Sabally matched her four second-half minutes. Allen did not appear at all in the second half.
Most encouragingly, the Liberty made a run with Breanna Stewart on the bench, and DeMarco stuck with that group deep into the fourth quarter. As a result, nobody reached 31+ minutes, and Stewie — for just the third time in nine games — played under 30 minutes.
Han’s minutes were vital; so was Rebekah Gardner, who scored all six of her points after intermission. They all came at the rim, too…
Said Gardner: “We have a lot of players coming into the system, so the staff is, like, trying to figure out who goes where and how the puzzle is fitting together. So yeah, I just try to get to the rim, shoot when I’m open, and also be a pest on defense.”
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The Liberty’s leading scorer on the night, though, was not a bench player but Pauline Astier, who put up 16/6/6 on 6-of-8 shooting, only turning it over twice. The Liberty, fittingly, won her minutes by ten points, the best mark on the team, as the 24-year-old Frenchwoman lived in the paint on Friday night…
Said Astier of her driving ability: “I think it brings me confidence, and also, I can create for my teammates around me. So I just tried to read the game, and we needed this tonight, so I just tried to bring it … and I did it tonight. Maybe it’s different next game. Maybe I will shoot more, so I don’t know. I just try to play in the moment.”
Phoenix’s Kahleah Copper shot just 4-of-16; Alyssa Thomas shot 5-of-14, and they were the only visitors to take double-digit attempts. With Stewie and JJ having quiet scoring nights (and Marine Johannès scoring just six points), one role player needed to step up. Luckily, she was on the Liberty’s side.
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“I wasn’t familiar with Pauline before coming here,” said Gardner, “but I know she’s a young player from Europe and I think she’s been awesome. And I will say, having played in EuroLeague myself, to me, it’s harder than the WNBA, especially if overseas you’re a lead player and coming here as a more of a role player, and you’re playing with great players, like Sabrina, Stewie, JJ, it makes it a lot easier.”
With many thanks to Astier, the Liberty are now 5-4, over .500 heading into a few days off and the month of June. It has been quite ugly, at times, and they are still deeply flawed, particularly on offense as we saw on Friday night. Laney-Hamilton has provided a huge lift in her return from her three-game absence, but with the Liberty up three late in the game, she nearly threw the lead away after passing up an open 3-pointer, a recurring issue for the team during this stretch…
But she didn’t. Phoenix stole a cross-court pass, the Libs got back on D, and DeWanna Bonner missed a 28-footer. Exhale. A win is a win.
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“These are the kind of games that help you grow, that build character. Like, these are needed, you know. It’s not going our way offensively, but we find a way anyways, and we were so — we were so together tonight, and we’re connected. There’s not a lot more you can ask for,” explained Chris DeMarco postgame.
Then, after a brief pause, half a grin escaped the corners of his lips: “Maybe less turnovers.”
Final Score: New York Liberty 75, Phoenix Mercury 68
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Satou Sabally downplayed the reunion postgame, but that’s the headline here.
“I’m excited for her to have a warm welcome,” she said. “I think everyone is super excited to have her back, and I’m just excited to get to spend some time with my sister off the court.”
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Indeed, Nyara Sabally and Sandy Brondello are making their returns to Barclays Center. Tip-off is scheduled for Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m. ET.
