There you have it.
There’s also Liberty, who was strong last year.
The Liberty are expected to be a super team with the hopes of winning the title for the second consecutive year.
The freedom they expect from themselves.
a version of Liberty that was troublingly missing earlier in the season.
The Liberty came into Wednesday’s game in the midst of a losing streak the team hasn’t experienced since most of its superteam was formed before last season. The losses to the Sky and Lynx marked the first time the Liberty has lost two consecutive games in the regular season since Aug. 6 and 8, 2022.
Sabrina Ionescu and Jonquel Jones had no intention of adding a third loss to their losing streak, and their energy was contagious as the Liberty (5-2) beat the Mercury 81-78 on Wednesday night at Barclays Center.
“We played a lot better than we did last time,” head coach Sandy Brondello said. “We fought a lot harder today.”
But it wasn’t easy.
Liberty struggled and stumbled. The Mercury used a 23-11 run to get within one in the final minute of the second quarter and led 59-58 with 1:03 left in the third quarter, their first lead since leading 6-5 with 7:24 left in the first quarter. Liberty soon found itself trailing 65-60 with 7:52 left.
But that’s the beauty of a superteam: The options at their disposal were too much for the Mercury, and while Ionescu gave the Liberty an early lead, it was Jones and Bethony Rainey-Hamilton who made the run late.
Liberty fought back with a commanding 9-0 run to take a 69-65 lead with 5:17 left in the game, but stumbled again down 74-71 with just over two minutes left.
Liberty wins. Noah K. Murray – NY Post
But Jones made another layup and Courtney VanderSloot got a steal, was fouled and made one of two free throws to tie the score at 74-74.
Jones was fouled and made two free throws, and Laney Hamilton sealed the game with a contested jump shot to give Liberty a 78-74 lead with 31 seconds left.
After finding themselves in a difficult position, their historic two-game losing streak did not last any longer.
“Don’t get too excited or too depressed, stay cool,” Brondello said of the 15-point lead that disappeared. “What can you control in those moments? We had some bad times. … But we stayed cool, we stayed calm, we stayed together. And when you do those good things, it usually produces good results. We came out with a really good win.”
Ionescu was fired up from the opening whistle and sparked a furious game, hitting a jump shot with 1:18 left in the first quarter and then showering the opposing team with animated fist pumps and harsh words that even earned her a technical foul.
But then Ionescu made a 3-pointer on her next attempt, and that was her night. She finished with a game-high 22 points and nine assists.
“I think [the fans] “They were excited and gave us a little extra boost,” Ionescu said.
Trailing 6-5 midway through the first quarter, Jones, Ionescu and Laney Hamilton hit three consecutive 3-pointers to give Liberty a 14-6 lead.
Then, a mid-range jump shot from Laney Hamilton and a 3-pointer from Jones led Liberty on a 14-0 run to take a 19-6 lead.
Liberty finished the first quarter with a 28-14 lead and led 36-21 with 8:10 left in the second quarter, but the Mercury fought back.
Jones scored 20 points, 10 of which came in the fourth quarter, and Laney Hamilton added 15. Jones dominated the Mercury in the paint late in the game.
“I think we had a different level of intent, which allowed me to go there and gave me the time to really post up and defend,” Jones said. “I think it just came down to a different mindset for me and my teammates.”
Kalia Copper, who was averaging 25.5 points entering Wednesday tied for second in the league, struggled early but ended up scoring 20 points for the Mercuries. Natasha Cloud added 19 points.
Though far from perfect, Liberty is back on track.
“We found a way,” Brondello said.
