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Breanna Stewart scored 28 points, Jonquel Jones had 14 points, 15 rebounds, and 7 assists, and the New York Liberty beat the Seattle Storm 92-86 on Wednesday night at Barclays Center to complete a two-game sweep.
Stewart shot 12-of-22 from the field and grabbed 8 rebounds. Four of Jones' 15 rebounds came at the offensive end. Sabrina Ionescu finished with 15 points, 6 assists, and 5 rebounds, and she did not commit a turnover in 31 minutes.
New York led 17-4 six minutes into the game and 21-6 with 3:48 left in the first quarter. Rebecca Allen scored 10 points in the period on 4-of-5 shooting with 2 3-pointers. The Liberty scored 12 fast-break points in the quarter and led 27-16 after one.
Liberty coach Chris DeMarco said New York has put a focus on protecting the paint, and that the team adjusted at halftime to get out to Seattle's bigs and make them put the ball on the floor.
"She's just been relentless. On the offensive glass, she's cutting when she's supposed to cut. She's finishing cuts," DeMarco said. "People are finding her for baskets. And every time she shoots, I think it's going in. She's shooting the ball well.
"But defensively, I think it's a little underrated right now what she's doing, with her ability to switch late with some of our bigs, guarding some of the best players on the other team, getting contests. She's long, creeps up on you late. So she's been awesome. She's been awesome."
Dominique Malonga scored 15 points in the second quarter on 6-of-9 shooting. Seattle shot 11-of-19 in the period. Malonga's 3-pointer with 4.5 seconds left in the half cut the New York lead to 47-43.
Malonga said Seattle has not started games well two nights in a row and gets away from what it is early, and that the team does not wait for the fourth quarter to react.
"Yeah, I think coming into this game we said that we just want to play harder, be more aggressive, so that's the mindset I tried to have coming into this game," Malonga said. "Of course, Stewie, she's amazing, so it's always good bumps. I was not really thinking. I was thinking about being aggressive for 40 minutes, and I think that just worked. I really wanted to be efficient in the paint. I think most of my shots were in the paint, and yeah, just efficiency. That's something I want to focus on and be able to bring every night.
"So I'm glad. I mean, we want to win at the end of the day, so it was a good game, but we still haven't got the win, so we need more."
Jade Melbourne's free throw with 7:22 left in the third quarter tied the game at 50. Ionescu scored 8 points over the next four minutes, starting with a three-point play and adding a 3-pointer and a cutting layup, and Stewart's fast-break layup made it 62-52. Ionescu scored 2 points in the first half and 11 in the third quarter. Seattle's bench outscored New York's 9-0 in the period, and the Storm trailed 69-65 after three.
Ionescu said New York has stacked games with the same starting lineup and is figuring out what it wants to get to late in games.
"I think just continuing to stick with it. I was having good looks early and they didn't go in, but they were good shots, and so I continued to kind of stick with it, got downhill, was able to get into the paint, and just kind of play out of transition," Ionescu said.
"That's probably the most open I kind of get, is just when we're able to get stops on one end and push the ball and maybe find an opening here or there. And we were able to just continue to get downhill. Stewie was layup after layup, back cut. JJ was pushing the ball. And so it just allows for us to maybe get some easier looks than when it's stagnant and slow."
Jones scored the first 6 points of the fourth quarter on a three-point play and a 3-pointer for a 75-65 lead. Seattle got within 6 points three times over the last two minutes. Flau'jae Johnson scored 9 of her 11 points in the quarter, and the Storm scored 18 points in the paint over the period. Pauline Astier made two free throws with 17 seconds left for a 92-84 lead.
Stewart said injuries early in the season made it hard for New York to find a rhythm, and that having the starting group set has given the bench a better idea of what to expect.
"Yeah, I mean, I think it's always tough when you play a team twice in a row, and Seattle has such a young core that they're never going to go away," Stewart said. "They're going to keep competing the entire 40 minutes. And I think that I wanted to just kind of get a good look at the basket at times, and just knowing tendencies and where I could get to. And Sab and I put it on ourselves to make sure that we get good looks to end the game."
Malonga finished with 31 points and 10 rebounds on 14-of-20 shooting. The 14 field goals tied her career high. She became the youngest player in WNBA history to reach 300 career field goals and 400 career rebounds, and the 31 points were her second 30-point game, which moved her into a tie for fourth in Storm history.
Storm coach Sonia Raman said Seattle pushed the pace and got stops in the second quarter, and that holding New York to 20 points in the period is what the team wants more of.
"Yeah, I mean, I love Dom's aggressiveness on offense. She was just elite tonight. Really great to see that, and I think she found lots of different solutions on the court to be able to get her — you know, the 20 shot attempts, the 14 makes, hitting from three," Raman said. "Would love to have seen her get some calls and get to the free throw line a little bit more, but finding ways to get to the glass. She was really just tremendous tonight.
"And Stewie is just a high-level player. We all know that. Said at pregame, MVP-caliber player, having a terrific season, tough cover. She definitely had a really good night. Those are two high-level players right there."
Melbourne scored 13 points and had a team-high 7 assists. Awa Fam added 13 points off the bench on 3-of-6 shooting from 3-point range with 5 rebounds and 3 assists. Seattle's bench outscored New York's 22-12. The Storm attempted 79 field goals, tying a season high, and outscored the Liberty 52-50 in the paint while grabbing 13 offensive rebounds to New York's 8.
Malonga said Raman is the team's engine and gives the group energy in the moments when Seattle needs solutions.
"I mean, Jade — that's her. That's her every night, the way she just organizes and gets us going and gives touches to everybody," Malonga explained. "She's just great at that. Every time, she finds ways to involve everybody, and I think that's great. That's a point guard.
"And so it's just good when you can rely on a player like Jade, her energy all the time for 40 minutes, her pressure that she puts on defense, too. So no, it's just great to have a player like Jade all the time next to you. You want to keep going with her energy."
Katie Lou Samuelson hurt her knee in the third quarter and did not return. Raman said Samuelson was being evaluated by the medical staff and that she had no update after the game.
Astier scored 11 points on 4-of-4 shooting with 5 assists and finished at plus-20. Han Xu scored 6 points in 17 minutes. New York made 19 of its 21 free throws and shot 7-of-29 from 3-point range. Leonie Fiebich (left foot), Satou Sabally (concussion protocol), and Anneli Maley were inactive for the Liberty.
Seattle is 6-27 and has lost 10 in a row. New York is 19-13 and has won six of its last seven. The announced attendance was 16,971.
The Storm close a four-game road trip at Portland on Saturday, with tip-off at 5:30 p.m. PT. The Liberty host Las Vegas on Sunday. A'ja Wilson was named a WNBA Player of the Month for July.
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Stewart shot 12-of-22 from the field and grabbed 8 rebounds. Four of Jones' 15 rebounds came at the offensive end. Sabrina Ionescu finished with 15 points, 6 assists, and 5 rebounds, and she did not commit a turnover in 31 minutes.
New York led 17-4 six minutes into the game and 21-6 with 3:48 left in the first quarter. Rebecca Allen scored 10 points in the period on 4-of-5 shooting with 2 3-pointers. The Liberty scored 12 fast-break points in the quarter and led 27-16 after one.
Liberty coach Chris DeMarco said New York has put a focus on protecting the paint, and that the team adjusted at halftime to get out to Seattle's bigs and make them put the ball on the floor.
"She's just been relentless. On the offensive glass, she's cutting when she's supposed to cut. She's finishing cuts," DeMarco said. "People are finding her for baskets. And every time she shoots, I think it's going in. She's shooting the ball well.
"But defensively, I think it's a little underrated right now what she's doing, with her ability to switch late with some of our bigs, guarding some of the best players on the other team, getting contests. She's long, creeps up on you late. So she's been awesome. She's been awesome."
Dominique Malonga scored 15 points in the second quarter on 6-of-9 shooting. Seattle shot 11-of-19 in the period. Malonga's 3-pointer with 4.5 seconds left in the half cut the New York lead to 47-43.
Malonga said Seattle has not started games well two nights in a row and gets away from what it is early, and that the team does not wait for the fourth quarter to react.
"Yeah, I think coming into this game we said that we just want to play harder, be more aggressive, so that's the mindset I tried to have coming into this game," Malonga said. "Of course, Stewie, she's amazing, so it's always good bumps. I was not really thinking. I was thinking about being aggressive for 40 minutes, and I think that just worked. I really wanted to be efficient in the paint. I think most of my shots were in the paint, and yeah, just efficiency. That's something I want to focus on and be able to bring every night.
"So I'm glad. I mean, we want to win at the end of the day, so it was a good game, but we still haven't got the win, so we need more."
Jade Melbourne's free throw with 7:22 left in the third quarter tied the game at 50. Ionescu scored 8 points over the next four minutes, starting with a three-point play and adding a 3-pointer and a cutting layup, and Stewart's fast-break layup made it 62-52. Ionescu scored 2 points in the first half and 11 in the third quarter. Seattle's bench outscored New York's 9-0 in the period, and the Storm trailed 69-65 after three.
Ionescu said New York has stacked games with the same starting lineup and is figuring out what it wants to get to late in games.
"I think just continuing to stick with it. I was having good looks early and they didn't go in, but they were good shots, and so I continued to kind of stick with it, got downhill, was able to get into the paint, and just kind of play out of transition," Ionescu said.
"That's probably the most open I kind of get, is just when we're able to get stops on one end and push the ball and maybe find an opening here or there. And we were able to just continue to get downhill. Stewie was layup after layup, back cut. JJ was pushing the ball. And so it just allows for us to maybe get some easier looks than when it's stagnant and slow."
Jones scored the first 6 points of the fourth quarter on a three-point play and a 3-pointer for a 75-65 lead. Seattle got within 6 points three times over the last two minutes. Flau'jae Johnson scored 9 of her 11 points in the quarter, and the Storm scored 18 points in the paint over the period. Pauline Astier made two free throws with 17 seconds left for a 92-84 lead.
Stewart said injuries early in the season made it hard for New York to find a rhythm, and that having the starting group set has given the bench a better idea of what to expect.
"Yeah, I mean, I think it's always tough when you play a team twice in a row, and Seattle has such a young core that they're never going to go away," Stewart said. "They're going to keep competing the entire 40 minutes. And I think that I wanted to just kind of get a good look at the basket at times, and just knowing tendencies and where I could get to. And Sab and I put it on ourselves to make sure that we get good looks to end the game."
Malonga finished with 31 points and 10 rebounds on 14-of-20 shooting. The 14 field goals tied her career high. She became the youngest player in WNBA history to reach 300 career field goals and 400 career rebounds, and the 31 points were her second 30-point game, which moved her into a tie for fourth in Storm history.
Storm coach Sonia Raman said Seattle pushed the pace and got stops in the second quarter, and that holding New York to 20 points in the period is what the team wants more of.
"Yeah, I mean, I love Dom's aggressiveness on offense. She was just elite tonight. Really great to see that, and I think she found lots of different solutions on the court to be able to get her — you know, the 20 shot attempts, the 14 makes, hitting from three," Raman said. "Would love to have seen her get some calls and get to the free throw line a little bit more, but finding ways to get to the glass. She was really just tremendous tonight.
"And Stewie is just a high-level player. We all know that. Said at pregame, MVP-caliber player, having a terrific season, tough cover. She definitely had a really good night. Those are two high-level players right there."
Melbourne scored 13 points and had a team-high 7 assists. Awa Fam added 13 points off the bench on 3-of-6 shooting from 3-point range with 5 rebounds and 3 assists. Seattle's bench outscored New York's 22-12. The Storm attempted 79 field goals, tying a season high, and outscored the Liberty 52-50 in the paint while grabbing 13 offensive rebounds to New York's 8.
Malonga said Raman is the team's engine and gives the group energy in the moments when Seattle needs solutions.
"I mean, Jade — that's her. That's her every night, the way she just organizes and gets us going and gives touches to everybody," Malonga explained. "She's just great at that. Every time, she finds ways to involve everybody, and I think that's great. That's a point guard.
"And so it's just good when you can rely on a player like Jade, her energy all the time for 40 minutes, her pressure that she puts on defense, too. So no, it's just great to have a player like Jade all the time next to you. You want to keep going with her energy."
Katie Lou Samuelson hurt her knee in the third quarter and did not return. Raman said Samuelson was being evaluated by the medical staff and that she had no update after the game.
Astier scored 11 points on 4-of-4 shooting with 5 assists and finished at plus-20. Han Xu scored 6 points in 17 minutes. New York made 19 of its 21 free throws and shot 7-of-29 from 3-point range. Leonie Fiebich (left foot), Satou Sabally (concussion protocol), and Anneli Maley were inactive for the Liberty.
Seattle is 6-27 and has lost 10 in a row. New York is 19-13 and has won six of its last seven. The announced attendance was 16,971.
The Storm close a four-game road trip at Portland on Saturday, with tip-off at 5:30 p.m. PT. The Liberty host Las Vegas on Sunday. A'ja Wilson was named a WNBA Player of the Month for July.
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