Wednesday’s game between the Liberty and Storm followed a similar pattern to New York’s win on Monday.
The Liberty jumped out to a massive first-quarter lead. This time, it was 21-6.
The Storm punched back and trailed by only four points heading into halftime.
Seattle made it a one-possession game in the third quarter. Then, the Liberty rattled off a quick 7-0 run to build up a 10-point advantage.
Seattle hung with the Liberty much longer than it did Monday, as the Storm were within four points of New York entering the fourth.
But the game yielded the same results as two days ago.
The Liberty held on, beating the rebuilding Storm 92-86.
It was New York’s sixth win in the past seven games.
Wednesday was just the same script with a few different actors.
Two days after Flau’jae Johnson dropped 25 points in Brooklyn, the Storm rookie had a quieter night Wednesday, finishing with 11. Meanwhile, Dominique Malonga carried the Storm with 31 points.
The Liberty got hefty contributions from their trio of superstars, Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones and Sabrina Ionescu.
Stewart paced the Liberty with 28 points and eight rebounds. Jones notched her 12th double-double of the season with 14 points and 15 rebounds. She also had seven assists.
Meanwhile, Ionescu rediscovered her rhythm in the second half. After going 0-for-4 in the first half, Ionescu scored 13 of her 15 points in the final two quarters.
The Liberty playing the Storm twice in three days felt like “a playoff series,” according to Liberty coach Chris DeMarco.
“Whether you win or lose, you’re trying to guess on the adjustments piece,” he said. “I do love these type of two-game series. I think it’s fun. I think you know the team fell. I think the scout’s a little bit different the next time around. So I’m excited for that.”
The Liberty gave DeMarco more to be excited about after Wednesday’s performance.
