Heading into the 2024 WNBA semifinals, a rematch of last year's finals between the Liberty and the Aces, both teams knew their opponents would come out on top.
With two super teams, it's natural to expect that.
Liberty coach Sandy Brondello is ready for the “chess game,'' and Aces coach Becky Hammon still has the “chess game'' we've seen all year as Liberty seeks revenge in this best-of-five semifinal. I expected them to play like an 'angry team.'
Even though the Aces entered Barclays Center wearing A'ja Wilson jerseys to cheer on the 2024 MVP, the Liberty's big three of Jonquel Jones, Sabrina Ionescu and Brianna Stewart appeared on Sunday afternoon. He was the MVP of the first round and threw the first punch against Las Vegas. They won 87-77.
After leading all the way, Liberty found itself in a pinch with 33.2 points left in the third quarter as Stewart picked up his fourth foul.
Liberty was forced to look more to Ionescu and Jones in the final quarter as the high-profile Stewart, who scored 34 points on 12-of-19 from the floor, ran into foul trouble.
Ionescu took up the scoring mantle, with Jones manning Wilson on the other end.
The Aces fought back to cut Liberty's lead to nine points at the start of the final quarter, but Stewart came off the bench with less than eight minutes remaining.
Ionescu drove to the rim and found Kennedy Burke open for a layup on the baseline.
Won the first match on September 29th. Michelle Falci writes for the NY Post
On the next two possessions, Ionescu found the kind of separation the Aces couldn't afford.
She made two consecutive 3-pointers to give Liberty an 81-68 lead with less than seven minutes left.
The crowd, which Brondello calls Liberty's “sixth man,” cheered, hoping Liberty would keep the momentum going.
Liberty found good players in Leonie Fievich, Stewart, and Ionescu, but couldn't take advantage of them.
However, he held on to his ace and maintained his lead.
With less than three minutes remaining, Liberty tried their best to maintain possession.
Just before the two-minute mark, Jones found Stewart cutting off Alisha Clark for an easy layup.
Stewart made a 3-point play on the next possession, and Jones made a big block on Wilson with 45 seconds left.
Jones said during Saturday's practice that Liberty “came out to prove us wrong and prove us right,” and they did just that.
Jones and Stewart controlled the paint more effectively early in the game, scoring 42 points inside to the Aces' 38.
They also outrebounded Las Vegas by nine points and outscored Las Vegas by 16 points in fast break points.
Ionescu scored 21 points and Jones scored 13 points.
They were able to hold Wilson to 21 points.
The Aces were led by Kelsey Plum with 24 points.
Jackie Young scored 17 points and Clark added nine points.
Win on September 29th. Michelle Falci writes for the NY Post
Liberty shot nearly 70 percent from the field, including an 8-0 run in the first quarter, eventually leading by as many as 18 points.
Defensively, Wilson was held to just four points, and the Aces scored a total of six points in the paint with Stewart and Jones getting in the way.
After Liberty took a seven-point lead in the first quarter, the Aces went on a 7-2 run to get within two points after losing the ball several times to Liberty's poor defense.
However, Liberty shifted momentum after a timeout.
Stewart came out and beat a bank shot floater over Clark tough, drawing a foul and turning it into a three-point play.
Jones then made a putback basket off a Laney Hamilton miss, contributing to a 16-6 run that took a 48-38 lead at the half.
