Betnijah Laney-Hamilton Clamps Caitlin Clark in Liberty Win

Three names held Caitlin Clark to a mere nine points and guided the New York Liberty to one big win.

Betnijah Laney-Hamilton proved to be the ultimate vaccine against the Indiana Fever on Thursday night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse: the fourth-year New Yorker drew top defensive duty on Clark, the highly-touted top pick of the 2024 WNBA Draft who faced a variety of defensive classes but mostly faced Laney-Hamilton in Thursday's tilt. In the first of what's sure to be many meetings against the Iowa alumna, Laney-Hamilton limited her to nine points on 2-of-8 shooting as New York cruised to a 102-66 victory.

"We have Betnijah Laney. What more can you ask for?" head coach Sandy Brondello rhetorically asked after the game. "(She's) one of the best defenders in the league, if not the best. She really takes it on, just committed to excellence, really. Caitlin made it tough for her and she'll have to repeat it again but it was the team got behind the ball. We played with a sense of urgency."

Laney-Hamilton will have to do it all over against come Saturday, as the Fever will serve as the Liberty's opponent in their 2024 Brooklyn opener (1 p.m. ET, ABC). Her early efforts have been a strong talking point in the early stages of this Liberty season, ones that continue to make her an indispensable and essential part of the plan when it comes to the assembly of All-Stars meant to build the present and future.

Having also scored 12 points (one of four Liberty starters in double-figures), Laney-Hamilton gave New York a plus-43 advantage on the scoreboard when she was on the floor, setting a new franchise record and the fifth-highest mark in the WNBA since 2012. The first two games have been a sterling showcase of Laney-Hamilton's dual threat abilities, as she previously scored 20 points, primarily built on a 7-of-7 mark in the paint in the narrow opening night win on Tuesday in Washington.

"Tonight, the way she was able to play defense and continue to be able to do what she does offensively just shows why she is the player that she is in this league and how much of a high standard we have for her to be able to that every single night," point guard Sabrina Ionescu said. "She always guards the best player night in and night out and does what she does offensively. We know that that's nothing new to us, but I'm just so happy that she was able to go out and do that tonight and kind of put everyone on watch to what she's truly capable of doing."

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