By Justin “Say Say” Rivers

Betnijah Laney and the New York Liberty (8-8, 3rd in Eastern Conference) look to keep the good times rolling and sweep two-game, road miniseries against Courtney Williams and the Atlanta Dream (5-9, 5th in Eastern Conference).

Last game, New York bludgeoned Atlanta in dominant fashion. After combining to go 10-for-53 (18.9%) from beyond the three-point arc in their previous two games against the Sky, the Liberty remained determined and drained 13 three-pointers against the Dream on Saturday. Shooting 54.2% from the field, 40.6% from deep, and 85.7% from the charity stripe, the Liberty ended the contest with a near-50-40-90 night as a team, while every player also finished with a positive plus/minus. Just. WOW. If not for a singular 14-14 tie with 1:37 remaining in the first period, this already decisive victory would have been a wire-to-wire beatdown.

Notably, Sabrina Ionescu returned to the starting lineup and logged another classic all-around performance that has become synonymous with the 5-foot-11 point guard. In 28 minutes of play, she finished with ten points, eight assists, six boards, and three made three-pointers, and her presence as a steadying anchor for the team was immediately apparent.

After pulling down a career-high 11 rebounds in Thursday’s loss to the Sky, Kylee Shook matched this career mark with another 11-rebound performance.

Following a sensational second half last Thursday, rookie Michaela Onyenwere had another standout performance against the Dream. She finished her evening with 18 points on an efficient 6-for-8 shooting from the field.

HAND DOWN, (WO)MAN DOWN

The star of the last game was undoubtedly Sami Whitcomb. The two-time WNBA champion was a supernova on offense – specifically from beyond the arc. In the first half, she was New York’s offense as she tied her career-high in points in just two quarters. Just as Atlanta was attempting to claw their way back into the contest in the second quarter, Whitcomb drove into the lane and had an and-one finish that was emblematic of the team’s grit and the manner in which New York always had an answer for a would-be Atlanta rally. The 5-foot-10 markswoman finished her career night with a career-high 30 points on 10-for-16 shooting, including 7-for-12 from beyond the arc. Her seven made triples tied a Liberty franchise record.

Since coming over via trade from Seattle in February, Whitcomb has been nothing short of invaluable for New York. During her four-season stint with the Storm, she made 13 starts. In 16 games with the Liberty, she has started every game, and, in extended minutes, she has improved her per game statistical output in all the following categories: points, assists, rebounds, field goal percentage, and three-point percentage. This season, she ranks top-5 in made three-pointers, top-10 in three-point percentage, and top-15 in both field goal percentage and defensive rebounds. She is a true two-way player and a should-be candidate for Most Improved Player.

Whitcomb will look to continue her stellar play when the team takes on the Dream again Tuesday night.

IF YOU DON’T KNOW [ B ] BY NOW

For the eleventh time in 16 games, Betnijah Laney exceeded the 20-point threshold as a scorer. Everything that Whitcomb was for the Liberty in the first half as an offensive catalyst, Laney was in the second half en route to a New York victory. Despite taking a nasty hit after catching a pass in the corner from Ionescu, she stayed in the contest and continued to torch her former squad to the tune of a 28-point (19 of which came in the second half), six-assist night.

Thus far this season, Laney’s old squad has had no answers for the superstar and MVP candidate. In two games against the Dream this season, Laney is averaging 24 points, 8.5 assists, and 4.5 rebounds on 46% shooting from the floor.

LOOKING AHEAD

In their two contests this season, the Liberty has had no trouble generating offense against the Dream. Over the weekend, the team improved to a perfect 6-0 when they score 85 or more points in regulation; plus, they eclipsed the 100-point mark for the first time this season on Saturday. To come away with another win in A-Town, the Liberty will need to once again stymie one of the Dream’s pair of talented guards in Courtney Williams and Chennedy Carter. Whereas Carter had a solid 24-point performance last game, the Liberty bottled up Williams and kept her to 12 points on an inefficient 5-for-17 shooting night. Doing this again Tuesday night will help the Liberty return home as winners of two-straight games.

If the Liberty can be a solid defensive team, of which they have proven to be capable, then they can truly go toe-to-toe with anyone in the league – whether their three-pointers are falling or not. With five games remaining before the Olympic break, Coach Walt Hopkins’s team will need to continue stacking wins to build up momentum going into the second half of the season.