By John “Woods” Armwood III
The New York Liberty throw the first punch in this semifinal series against the Las Vegas Aces, 87-77. On Football Sunday, the Liberty managed to sell out yet another crowd in their thriller victory over the Aces. The energy of the crowd fueled the building as well as the players. The Liberty came out purposefully and attempted to dominate the paint and establish their presence against the 2024 MVP Aja Wilson. The Liberty clearly tried to get the Aces out of rhythm by throwing multiple bodies at Wilson. Not to mention, All-Star Jonquel Jones stretched the floor and was aggressive early on.
“We came out, it’s Game 1, we wanted to play with a sense of urgency and protect our home court,” Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello said.
While superstar Breanna Stewart carried the majority of the scoring load, due to foul trouble she was subsided and was forced to go to the bench. Now, the Liberty offense appeared to lose flow for a moment, however All-Star Sabrina Ionescu began to take over and truly will them to victory. Ionescu ended with 21 points and five assists, however in the fourth quarter she recorded a huge eight points which was the difference in this matchup.
“I think we picked them up for 40 feet, that helped because there’s a trickle-down effect,” Aces head coach Becky Hammon stated. “This team is the fastest at getting into their offense, so we just tried to delay their offense from five seconds to start at seven. …It’s also exhausting, we have to put more bodies on Sabrina [Ionescue], I think Jack [Jackie Young] was just worn out. We put Tiff [Tifany Hayes] on her but we have to give her different looks.”
“I think we picked them up for 40 feet, that helped because there’s a trickle-down effect,” @LVAces HC @BeckyHammon stated. “This team is the fastest at getting into their offense, so we just tried to delay their offense … we have to put more bodies on @sabrina_i20."@nyliberty pic.twitter.com/jnOIZiIpKJ
— John “Woods” Armwood III (@J_Armwood908) September 30, 2024
The Past is the Past for the Liberty
Despite losing to the Aces in the finals last season, the Liberty have a brand new mindset and have learned from the experience. The team has gotten much better and the chemistry has grown tremendously. That said, in the opening half, Stewart came out aggressive and recorded 20 points. Throughout the game, she attacked the Aces continuously played passing lanes, and helped crash the boards to neutralize Wilson. Ultimately, Stewart ended with 34 points, setting her postseason scoring high in a Liberty uniform, on 63% (12-19) shooting from the field, 50% (2-4) shooting from beyond the arc, and 89% (8-9) from the free-throw line.
“I think I’ve just kind of grown from it, had a lot of time to reflect on it,” Stewart explained. “How I can be better. How to handle things collectively better. I don’t forget who I am and what I can do. ... That wasn’t my most proudest, but I'll continue to be better now.”
This marked Stewart’s 35th consecutive playoff game with at least 10 points, passing Lisa Leslie for the longest such streak in WNBA postseason history. The reigning Eastern Conference Player of the Month for September also recorded her fourth playoff game of at least 25 points in a Liberty uniform to pass Cappie Pondexter for the most 25-point games in Liberty postseason history.
What’s next for the Liberty?
The Liberty will face the Las Vegas Aces in Game 2 of the WNBA Semifinals on Tuesday, October 1 at 7:30 PM ET at Barclays Center.
“We’ll go back and we’ll regroup and I think we now what we have to di to win, we just have to execute it at a high level,” Hammon continued.