Breanna Stewart torched her former team for 32 points and Sabrina Ionescu powered the visiting New York Liberty in the second half en route to a 98-85 win over the Seattle Storm on Friday.
Despite the defeat, the Storm (17-12) clinched a playoff berth when the Atlanta Dream lost to the Las Vegas Aces on Friday.
WNBA-leading New York (27-6), coming into the Friday contest off a loss to last-place Los Angeles, fell behind by seven points midway through the third quarter. That’s when Ionescu took over.
She scored 12 of her 25 points over the final 5:29 of the third period, fueling the Liberty’s decisive 21-6 run that ran into the fourth. Ionescu’s outstanding second half included her grabbing an offensive rebound while on her knees after falling on a missed runner, then converting the putback from a grounded position.
The unconventional offensive board was one of eight rebounds for Ionescu, who also dished a game-high eight assists. Leonie Fiebich added 12 points, all of which came on 4-of-5 shooting from 3-point range, and Jonquel Jones grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds in her return from illness.
Stewart, who joined the Liberty in 2023 after leading Seattle to WNBA championships in 2018 and 2020, shot 10 of 16 from the floor and 3 of 4 from beyond the 3-point arc in her second consecutive 32-point game. Stewart added six assists and five rebounds.
The Storm got 26 points and seven assists from Skylar Diggins-Smith and 20 points from Jewell Loyd. Loyd shot just 2-for-9 from 3-point range, however, as New York outscored Seattle 36-15 from beyond the arc.
New York also held a 45-17 rebounding edge. Seattle stayed close even after the Liberty came alive in the second half by turning 16 Liberty turnovers into 24 points. New York scored only seven points on Seattle’s five turnovers.
Seattle’s Nneka Ogwumike, who finished with 15 points and a team-high eight rebounds, swiped a game-high three steals. Gabby Williams, who rejoined the Storm last week after missing the first three months of the season, finished with seven points, three assists and two steals in her first start of 2024.
–Field Level Media
