It’s a win, but they might have suffered a bigger loss along the way. It took five extra minutes, but the New York Liberty did just enough to hang on and take a 1-0 series lead over the Phoenix Mercury on Sunday afternoon.
Advertisement
Where to follow the game
ESPN is the place to be. Disney Plus on streaming. Tip after 8 PM.
Injuries
Nothing doing for Phoenix.
Breanna Stewart left the game in overtime with a left knee injury. At practice on September 15, Sandy Brondello said the testing on Stewart’s knee came back “relatively clean.” She’s officially listed as questionable.
The game
Alyssa Thomas will look to bounce back in a major way. AT had a chance to put Phoenix ahead in the final seconds of Game One, but…
That miss is gonna eat at her for a while. The Liberty defense made things especially tough on Thomas and we got to see Jonquel Jones and Stewart use their length to make things hard on AT. New York struggled with the inverted pick and rolls for much of the night, but they were able to figure it out by the end of the game. The Liberty will rely on their length to make things hard on Thomas when she’s on the inside and give up free throw line jumpers if those are open to her.
Advertisement
On the other side, we’ll see how the team utilizes Jonquel Jones on offense. JJ only took seven shots on Sunday afternoon and worked as a hub on the perimeter for the most part. If Stewart is out, more will be on the Finals MVP’s shoulders on that end of the court. Natasha Mack has size at center, but if Jones can do her work early, she’ll be in great position to score and draw fouls. Even if her shots aren’t there, the team is going to need her to control the boards. It took all season, but the Liberty remembered how to rebound at the right time. In a series like this, you have to keep second and third chances to a minimum. When you give great teams more opportunities to score, eventually your defense is gonna break.
If Stewart is out, look for Kennedy Burke to take on a bigger role. KB got the practice run with the starters yesterday and is the closest approximation to what Stewart can give the Liberty. Burke had a bad game on Sunday as it felt like she was too sped up and wasn’t at her normal pace. The Liberty will need her to find those driving lanes and do her best to replicate what Stewart can do on defense. It’ll take a total team effort to make up for it.
Curiously, Nate Tibbets didn’t go with Monique Akoa Makani to start overtime on Sunday. She was making things challenging for Sabrina Ionescu throughout the night, but in OT, Sab was able to finally get into enough of a rhythm and keep the team steady in Stewart’s absence. They’ll need more of that if they wish to move on to Round 2.
Ultimately, this will depend on Natasha Cloud. Phoenix dared Tash to beat them from deep, and she was more than up to the challenge
Advertisement
The book on Cloud has always been to dare her to shoot and go under to expect her drives. When she’s making threes like this and is confident with her jump shot, it opens everything up for the team. On the other side, she’ll be chasing Kahleah Copper all around the court. The Liberty played a ton of drop coverage in game one, which meant Tash has to navigate screens to stay attached to the former Finals MVP. If Copper does have an advantage and is barreling to the rim, the Liberty size will make its presence known
Counters to counters are what playoff basketball is all about. We’ll see what it looks like tonight
Advertisement
Player to watch: Satou Sabally
Simply put, your All-Star can NOT play like that again. Satou Sabally picked a bad time to have the worst game of her life. Satou went 2-17 from the field and just did not have the shot going. Some of that was the Liberty defense, but a lot of her attempts were quality looks for a player of her caliber. When you’re an All-Star and one of the big off-season acquisitions, moments like this are what you’re here for. Sabally is a terrific player and one that doesn’t linger on bad performances too much. Look for her to get back on track tonight.
Defending Sabally is a team affair, and Leonie Fiebich will get the large portion of it this evening. Leo does a bit of everything for this group and she’ll need to keep herself out of foul trouble. With Stewart limited, Sandy Brondello will lean on her a little bit more as the team tries to advance to the next round. On offense, it’s the same story where everyone wants her to be a bit more aggressive. Leo had shot opportunities on drives early in the game on Sunday, but decided to pass out in order to keep the offense humming. If she has to take on a bigger role, she should trade in some of those passes for shots inside of the painted area. It’ll keep Phoenix honest and make her more of a threat with the ball in her hands. And if all else fails and there’s a big three pointer to be made, you can count on Leo.
Advertisement
It’s kind of her thing!
From the Vault
A lower seeded New York team coming home with a chance to eliminate a higher seeded Phoenix team? We been here before
More reading: More reading: Desert Wave Media, AZ Central, Swish Appeal, Breakaway, SB Nation, Women’s Basketball Roundup, The Local W, New York Daily News, No Cap Space, New York Post, Newsday, The Athletic, NY Liberty Fan TV, Yahoo Sports, Gotta Get Up, Sports Illustrated, Fansided, Just Women’s Sports, Winsidr, Her Hoop Stats, CBS Sports, and The Next
