Sabrina Ionescu shot 8 of 13 from 3-point range and scored a career-high 37 points, and visiting New York used a big third-quarter run to thwart an Atlanta Dream rally in the Liberty’s 106-83 win on Friday.
Ionescu’s eight 3-pointers in one game tied for second in league history behind Kelsey Mitchell’s nine for Indiana on Sept. 8, 2019.
New York (5-2) led Atlanta by as many as 24 points in the second quarter of Friday’s Commissioner’s Cup clash, going on a 28-6 run to close the first half.
But the Dream (2-4) bounced back for the first 5:16 out of the locker room, outscoring the Liberty 21-6 to pull within seven points on Rhyne Howard’s 3-pointer midway through the third.
The shot was part of a 3-of-7 night from beyond the 3-point arc for Howard, who became the fastest player in WNBA history to make 100 careers 3-pointers at 40 games. Howard finished with 15 points.
New York responded to Atlanta’s comeback push immediately and decisively.
The Liberty did not allow another Atlanta point for more than five minutes of game time, going on a 10-0 run that pushed the New York lead to double digits the rest of the way.
The visitors grew their advantage to as many as 28 points in the fourth quarter.
New York shot 4 of 7 from 3-point range in the final period, part of a 14-of-30 night for the Liberty overall. Along with Ionescu’s eight, Breanna Stewart knocked down four 3-pointers on her six attempts.
Stewart finished with 25 points and grabbed a game-high nine rebounds. Stewart has scored at least 20 points in five of her last six outings.
Jonquel Jones added another eight rebounds and 11 points. Courtney Vandersloot dished 11 assists for New York.
Allisha Gray scored 17 points to lead Atlanta, which played its first game since learning Aari McDonald will miss the next 3-to-4 weeks due to a torn labrum.
Cheyenne Parker added another 12 points and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds for the Dream.
–Field Level Media
