Scary 2nd Half Costs Liberty vs. Lynx
BROOKLYN—Another WNBA Finals rematch wasn't Minnesota nice for the New York Liberty.
A scary second half spelled the Liberty's doom in the second of four meetings against the Minnesota Lynx, who took an 83-71 decision at Barclays Center on Sunday afternoon.
Kayla McBride scored 18 points, mostly on a quartet of triples, while rivalry newcomer DiJonai Carrington had 15 off the bench a week after coming over from Connecticut in a trade. Minnesota (27-5) took control on a dominant 16-3 run at the end of the third, part of a second half that saw them go up by as much as 16. With the win, the league-leading Lynx moved 6.5 games ahead of second-place New York (20-11) on the WNBA leaderboard.
The Lynx have taken each of the first two rematch stanzas with the Liberty missing contributors like Kennedy Burke, Nyara Sabally, and Breanna Stewart.
New York, however, likely won't lean on the crutch of ailments, especially considering glaring turnover issues: a loss of 13 turnovers yielded 16 second half points for the Lynx, spelling the end of a three-game winning streak despite five different players reaching double figures. That group was paced by Natasha Cloud, who was 6-of-11 from the field with six rebounds and five assists.
The first half played out to the tune of nine ties and 10 lead changes, finishing out with the Liberty ahead by two. Though not immune to the second period shooting struggles (beyond Isabelle Harrison, who was 4-of-5 off the bench in the frame), the Liberty locked down defensively, allowing no three-pointers after giving up three in the first while also keeping Minnesota off the offensive glass until the penultimate minute.
Even the third, often accepted as a danger zone for New York, started off optimistically, as a three from Emma Meesseman created a seven-point lead with just over three minutes gone by, allowing the Liberty to earn one of its daily goals of making its opponent call the half's first timeout.
Minnesota, however, made its move after that, taking advantage of several wayward metropolitan passes to create fast, easy opportunities. Carrington and Minnesota mainstay Natisha Hiedeman took particularly advantage, uniting for 25 points on a combined 11-of-16 shooting.
The loss spoiled an otherwise joyful day in Liberty circles, which celebrated the return of about 20 alumnae on hand to witness the addition of five-year New Yorker Tari Phillips into the team's Ring of Honor. She's the eighth woman to land the accolade, joining Becky Hammon, Kym Hampton, Vickie Johnson, Rebecca Lobo, Crystal Robinson, Teresa Weatherspoon, and Sue Wicks.
In the meantime, a back-to-back on the West Coast now awaits the Liberty, who face the Los Angeles Sparks on Tuesday night (10 p.m. ET, My9).
Geoff Magliocchetti is a veteran sportswriter who contributes to a variety of sites on the "On SI" network. In addition to the Yankees/Mets, Geoff also covers the New York Knicks, New York Liberty, and New York Giants and has previously written about the New York Jets, Buffalo Bills, Staten Island Yankees, and NASCAR.