Liberty Vanquish Vegas, Clinch WNBA Playoff Berth

A dominant final stretch allowed the New York Liberty to etch their name on the WNBA playoff bracket.

Aug 15, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu (20) reacts in the first half against the LA Sparks at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports | Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The New York Liberty inched one step closer to the WNBA's jackpot in Las Vegas on Saturday late afternoon.

With a 79-67 victory over the Las Vegas Aces, the Liberty became the first team to clinch a 2024 WNBA playoff berth, securing their sixth consecutive victory in style. Four Liberty starters reached double-figures in scoring, led by 23 for Sabrina Ionescu. Jonquel Jones had 17 rebounds en route to a double-double, pairing her boards (seven of the offensive variety) with 10 points.

But defense proved to be the name of the game for the Liberty after a troubling opening period: Las Vegas hit each of its first five tries from three-point range and shot 60 percent from the floor while building a lead that got as high as 11.

New York managed to narrow the gap to four by the first intermission as Ionescu scored half of the Liberty's first 30 points. One New York went on a 7-0 run to break a 30-all tie, it did not lose the lead for the rest of the game. The Aces' countereffort was stifled by the Liberty defense, as they scored only eight points in the second period, marking the third time that New York has held the Aces to a single digit in scoring over the last two seasons.

The Aces' biggest threat to the Liberty lead was a pair of triples from Kiah Stokes and Chelsea Gray shortly before the midway mark of the final period, two that turned a 10-point lead into a four-point hang-on in mere seconds. From there, though, the Liberty (23-4) scored a dozen in a row, the effort opened by a Leonie Fiebich triple. That closed New York's scoring and secured their sixth consecutive victory, extending the WNBA's longest active winning streak.

With their playoff clinch, the Liberty will now play extra games for the fourth consecutive season, their first such streak since 1999-2002. Head coach Sandy Brondello has also reached the playoffs in each of her dozen seasons between Phoenix and New York.

The Liberty will finally take to Brooklyn hardwood on Tuesday, as they'll entertain a Barclays Center crowd for the first time in over a month when they face the first half of a couple against the Dallas Wings (7 p.m. ET, WNYW/NBA TV).

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