Liberty Complete Undefeated Commissioner’s Cup Slate With 93-88 Win Over Mystics

GAME LEADERS NEW YORK WASHINGTON
POINTS Jones (29) Melbourne (21)
REBOUNDS Laney-Hamilton (10) Hines-Allen (8)
ASSISTS Ionescu (8) Hines-Allen (7)

 

TEAM NOTABLES

On Sunday, the New York Liberty (11-2) defeated the Washington Mystics (0-12), 93-88, in front of a sellout crowd of 12,477 fans to clinch home court advantage in the Commissioner’s Cup Championship game.

After five Commissioner’s Cup games, the Liberty sit at 5-0 with a +78 point differential.

At 11-2, the 2024 Liberty are tied for the team’s best record through 13 games in franchise history, matching New York’s 11-2 start in 1997.

New York has won the team’s last seven games, marking the seventh winning streak of at least seven games in franchise history.

The Liberty’s 24 points from the bench was the second-highest scoring game by New York’s reserves so far this season.

Up Next: The New York Liberty will face the Las Vegas Aces on Saturday, June 15 at 3:00 p.m. ET at Michelob ULTRA Arena.

KEY RUNS

Q1: Washington went on a 10-0 run from the 3:29 mark of the first to the 0:55 mark of the first quarter.

Q2: Washington went on a 9-0 run from the 3:04 mark of the second to the 1:05 mark of the second quarter.

Q3: New York went on a 13-3 run from the 5:11 mark of the third to the 2:04 mark of the third quarter.

Q4: New York went on a 14-6 run from the 8:18 mark of the fourth to the 1:24 mark of the final quarter.

PLAYER NOTABLES

Jonquel Jones led the Liberty offense with 29 points on 73% (11-15) shooting from the field and 60% (3-5) shooting from beyond the arc to set her new Liberty career high in scoring. Jones added eight rebounds, three assists and two blocks to join Tamika Catchings as the only players in WNBA history to record consecutive games of at least eight rebounds, three assists, three three-pointers made, and two blocks, per Across the Timeline.

With three three-pointers in the first quarter, Jones recorded consecutive quarters of at least three made three-pointers for the first time in her career, after hitting three threes in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s win in Connecticut. The 2023 Commissioner’s Cup MVP scored at least 20 points in consecutive games for the first time as a member of the Liberty.

Reigning Eastern Conference Player of the Week Sabrina Ionescu scored 19 points and added three three-pointers to extend her streak of regular season games with at least one made three-pointer to 38, a Liberty franchise record and the longest active streak in the WNBA. Ionescu recorded 10 points, five rebounds and five assists in the first half for the sixth half of at least 10/5/5 in her career, which is the most in Liberty franchise history according to Elias Sports Bureau.

Leonie Fiebich came off the bench to score a career-high 12 points on 50% (4-8) shooting from beyond the arc. This was the highest-scoring game by a Liberty reserve so far this season. Fiebich is one of just four 2024 rookies to make at least four three-pointers in a single game.

Betnijah Laney-Hamilton scored five points to go along with a season-high 10 rebounds and six assists. Laney-Hamilton posted at least four assists for the fourth consecutive game, which is tied for the third-longest streak of her career. This was Laney-Hamilton’s first double-digit rebounding game in a Liberty uniform.

Breanna Stewart finished with 14 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals. Stewart recorded at least three assists in her last six games, her second-longest streak of three or more assists in a Liberty uniform and the fourth-longest of her career.