Liberty Spoil Mystics’ Home Opener in Overtime

WASHINGTON — The game on Sunday between the Liberty and the Washington Mystics wasn’t exactly a classic.

Still, it ended in a victory for the Liberty—though the match felt frustrating for both teams.

After a game marked by interruptions and fouls, the Liberty managed to come out on top, winning 98-93 in overtime, ruining the Mystics’ home opener in the process.

New York held the lead for a significant portion of the game.

It wasn’t until seven minutes and 58 seconds into the fourth quarter that Cassandre Prosper scored, which allowed the Mystics to gain their first lead since the second quarter began.

The momentum shifted during the overtime period, and the teams were neck and neck in the final five minutes, ultimately leading to overtime.

For the Liberty, Jonquel Jones fouled out with 3:25 remaining in the fourth quarter, and Han Shu followed suit, fouling out with 1:22 left in overtime.

Kiki Iliafen’s putback tied the game at 92 with just 33.5 seconds to go.

After Prosper fouled during a layup attempt with 29.6 seconds left on the clock, Bethonia Rainey Hamilton stepped up and made both free throws.

Meanwhile, Marin Johannes forced a crucial turnover from Sonia Citron. Despite the crowd chanting complaints about the officiating throughout the arena, Pauline Astier sealed the game with two free throws for the Liberty.

Johannes continued to impress, sinking six three-pointers and finishing as the game’s top scorer with 25 points. Brianna Stewart contributed 23 points and grabbed nine rebounds.

On the other side, Iliafen led the Mystics with 20 points and 12 rebounds.

In some ways, the Liberty started this game just like they began their season opener against Connecticut on Friday.

They took an early offensive lead, going up by seven points midway through the first quarter. However, they soon hit a lull.

Defensively, their rotations felt a bit slow. Consequently, the Mystics capitalized, outscoring the Liberty 23-9 over a span of 5:13 in the first quarter, taking a seven-point lead into the second.

New York managed to find their footing again, thanks in part to Johannes, who hit a crucial three-pointer, allowing the Liberty to head into halftime with a seven-point advantage.

Yet, a concerning trend has begun to surface for the Liberty. This was the second consecutive game where they fell behind in the third quarter.

The Mystics kept pressing, attacking the basket and frustrating Liberty’s defensive efforts by forcing difficult shots.

Last season, the team struggled with slow starts in the second half. Moving forward, they need to be more focused at the start of the third quarter.

Overall, the game felt a bit uneven. The Liberty were called for 31 personal fouls while the Mystics had 27.

The upcoming schedule isn’t extremely tough for New York. They defeated the Connecticut Sun by 31 points in their season opener, and they managed to edge out the young but promising Washington Mystics on Sunday.

Next, the Liberty will travel to Portland to face the Fire twice in three days, followed by a week off before their next home game.