The Liberty squandered a 17-point halftime lead and allowed a series of clutch shots by Chicago’s Courtney Williams down the stretch, losing to the Sky, 86-82 at Barclays Center.
Down three with less than 30 seconds left, the Liberty had a chance to even the score, but an offensive foul on Sabrina Ionescu turned the ball over to the Sky.
An airball from Breanna Stewart on the next possession sealed the fate for New York, as Chicago got revenge for Friday’s tough loss.
The Liberty squeaked out a 77-76 win two days prior, but Sunday’s matchup featured better execution on both ends of the floor for New York in the first half. Defense was much tighter for Sandy Brondello’s club, keeping the Sky to 29% shooting in the first two periods.
But Copper and the Sky made the game competitive again in the third. Copper’s 17 third-quarter points shrunk the lead to as little as five. She finished with 28 points and seven rebounds.
The Sky took the lead in the fourth quarter with the Liberty lacking the cohesion shown in the first half.
Brondello told reporters after Friday’s victory that her team has “to put together 40 minutes,” and emphasized the need for urgency throughout four quarters. The issues remained the same against the Sky.
Five games into the season, the Liberty usually flip the switch in the second half to secure victories, but Sunday was was the reverse. The Liberty scored just five points midway through the fourth quarter.
The Liberty started the game with an 11-0 run, forcing an early Chicago timeout. The Sky scored their first bucket with 4:37 left in the first quarter on a two-pointer from Copper.
Turnovers committed by New York were the theme in Friday’s win, but it was the Sky’s five first-quarter turnovers that put them down early. They Sky were able to catch up, ending the first period down 18-15.
James Wade’s team was a step too slow in the first half on both sides of the floor. Not being able to keep up with Liberty ball movement and too slow to outpace Liberty rotations on offense.
A lot of the defensive pressure was caused by the disruption of Kayla Thornton. She continues to start the season as one of the best defenders on the roster. She tipped passes and shut off passing lanes. Her on-ball defense was also on-display, forcing Sky guard Marina Mabrey to shoot an airball on an attempt as the shot clock expired in the second quarter.
Liberty guards skipped the ball around and pushed the ball, leading to a 17-point halftime lead.
On offense, Courtney Vandersloot ran the show with aggression. She finished with 18 points,10 assists and eight rebounds. Sabrina Ionescu played the point on some possessions, but her struggles from Friday continued. After shooting 1-for-7 in the last game, she shot 2-for-9 with four points Sunday.
Marine Johannes’ 2023 Barclays Center debut started off great. Her two three buckets came on the fast break, finishing at the rim with two easy layups. She also connected on a corner three to put her team up 16 midway through the second quarter. Johannes contributed 11 points, creating opportunities from running out on the break after defensive rebounds.
But it wasn’t enough and the Liberty will look to get back in the win column against the Minnesota Lynx on Wednesday.