No Breanna Stewart or Betnijah Laney-Hamilton? No problem.
The Connecticut Sun should’ve known they were in trouble after Sabrina Ionescu began the game with two made 25-footers in the first quarter. If Stephanie White’s squad didn’t get the message by then, Ionescu delivered a 26-footer that turned into a four-point play after Sun guard Veronica Burton fouled the star while in the shooting motion.
Even without Stewart (rest) and Laney-Hamilton (knee), Ionescu propelled the Liberty to a 82-74 win over Sun at Barclays Center Tuesday. Ionescu’s 30 points gave the Liberty its 21st win of the year and puts her team 2.5 games ahead of the Sun atop WNBA standings as the league goes on a monthlong break for All-Star and Olympic Games.
Two star Liberty players on the mend wasn’t enough for the No. 2 seed Sun to prevent a seven-game regular-season losing streak against its Eastern Conference rivals.
This time around, Ionescu was to blame. She nearly totaled Laney-Hamilton (12.7) and Stewart’s (19.3) points per game averages by going 7-of-14 from the field, including 6-of-11 from downtown.
“It’s just big time,” Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello described Ionescu’s growth. “I didn’t expect her to be as good as she is right now.”
Despite double-digit deficits in the first half, do-it-all superstar Alyssa Thomas and the Sun managed to go into the fourth quarter tied with the home team.
White was forced to call timeout just 1:13 minutes into the final period after Ionescu generated five quick points. A Kennedy Burke steal led to an open Ionescu trey in transition. Then the sharpshooter returned the favor on the next possession, assisting a cutting Burke for an easy layup.
After the sequence, the Sun failed to tie or regain the lead.
The Sun — again — lost another winnable game against the Liberty. And as the Sun attempted to go for the win, their best player — Thomas — watched from the bench for the entirety of the fourth quarter. The Liberty head coach said Thomas told her she rested with the Olympics coming up.
Brondello said at the postgame podium she was initially surprised Thomas wasn’t on the floor. She then added: “I was happy.”
Adding to the regular-season streak over the Sun, the Liberty also knocked them out in last year’s postseason to book a trip to the WNBA Finals.
Ionescu said postgame the Liberty hold themselves to a “really high standard” whenever they matchup against the Sun.
“They know how to play basketball and they do it really well on all positions,” she said. “So that holds us accountable…”
For Ionescu, Tuesday night was another All-Star performance. She took the helm with her star teammates unavailable. It’s something her head coach has gotten used to as Ionescu previously shined as the lead point guard when Courtney Vandersloot missed time earlier in the season due to the death of her mother.
“She’s just consistent every single night,” Brondello said of Ionescu. “And that’s what greatness is isn’t it? It’s bringing it every single night. There’s no excuses.”
Ionescu now heads to Phoenix — alongside Jonquel Jones and Stewart — for Saturday’s All-Star Game. Afterwards, Stewart and Ionescu will head to Paris to represent Team USA in the Olympics.
Vandersloot was the only other Liberty player to score at least 10 points Tuesday. Leonie Fiebich and Kennedy Burke got the start and scored nine points apiece. Burke also logged four steals while Fiebich grabbed five boards.
Sun center Brionna Jones scored a team-high 17 points while grabbing five boards and getting three steals. Thomas logged 16 points, eight rebounds, five assists, one steal and one block.
