This might be the season the New York Liberty finally ascend to the WNBA mountaintop.
With the way they’re playing, it's hard to argue and bet against last season’s runners-up.
Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones dropped double-double outings, as the playoff-bound Liberty gifted head coach Sandy Brondello a resounding 94-74 birthday win over the Dallas Wings.
FEELS GOOD TO BE HOME 🏠
— New York Liberty (@nyliberty) August 21, 2024
A DUB FOR THE CITY! 🌃👐#SEAFOAMSZN | #LIGHTITUPNYL pic.twitter.com/JPRrWlCr5X
The two-time MVP in Stewart took command with 26 points and 12 rebounds, while Jones added 23 markers and 12 rebounds to extend the league-leading Liberty’s (24-4) winning streak to seven games.
The @nyliberty lit up the scoreboard, securing a dominant 94-74 win over the Wings 🗽
— WNBA (@WNBA) August 21, 2024
Breanna Stewart (26 PTS, 12 REB) and Jonquel Jones (23 PTS, 12 REB) feasted in the dub, serving up double-double specials #WelcometotheW pic.twitter.com/WG3ZUCPZMN
Veteran playmaker Courtney Vandersloot chipped her own double-double of 15 points and 11 assists as New York led by as many as 22 points en route to their third straight double digit win of the season.
Courtney Vandersloot is orchestratin' a symphony notching a 10-5-6 statline 🎻
— WNBA (@WNBA) August 21, 2024
📱 Liberty-Dallas | League Pass pic.twitter.com/yrid94IqYI
Dallas nudged closer to within four points, 65-69, when Satou Sabally had five quick points in the fourth.
That was the closest the Wings ever got as the Liberty responded on a 14-0 run with Jones accounting for seven points in that stretch to seize control at 83-65.
Kennedy Burke added 13 points off the bench for New York, who played without injured superstar Sabrina Ionescu, who sat out with a sore neck.
Sabally paced the Wings (6-21) with 24 points while Arike Ogunbowale chipped in 17 markers, including 13 in the second quarter, while Natasha Howard had 13 points.
Earlier, Stewart and Jones 12 combined for 26 points as Liberty held a 48-39 halftime lead. The Liberty had 15 assists on 19 baskets alone by the end of the first two quarters.
Both teams will meet again in a return match on Friday, August 23 (PH Time).
Historic night in Beantown
DiJonai Carrington and the Connecticut Sun took center stage in a historic night in Boston.
Carrington scored 19 points and Sun banked on a clutch14-0 finishing kick to drub the Los Angeles Sparks, 69-61, in the first WNBA game to be played at the Boston Celtics' TD Garden.
DiJonai Carrington led the way during a historic night, sparking the @ConnecticutSun's 4Q surge in a major win over the Sparks at TD Garden ?? pic.twitter.com/tKVvNzjwLq
— WNBA (@WNBA) August 21, 2024
Trailing 59-55 with 4:15 left in regulation, Carrington led a feisty comeback en route to a bounce-back win in front of a sellout crowd of 19,125 fans.
Sun's starting five shines bright in the clutch comeback victory vs. the Sparks ??
— WNBA (@WNBA) August 21, 2024
DiJonai Carrington: 19 PTS, 4 REB
Alyssa Thomas: 9 PTS, 16 REB, 8 AST
Ty Harris: 14 PTS, 4 AST, 3 STL
Bri Jones: 15 PTS, 7 REB, 3 AST, 2 STL#WelcometotheW pic.twitter.com/Ci1lOGknvI
With the victory, Connecticut (20-7) are now a game ahead of the third-seed Minnesota Lynx (19-8) and are three-games behind the Liberty for the top spot in the team standings.
Brionna Jones added 15 points while Tyasha Harris contributed 14 and veteran Alyssa Thomas had a near-triple double of nine points, eight assists and 16 rebounds.
Meanwhile, rookie Rickea Jackson and Azura Stevens both had 14 points for the Sparks, who dropped their fifth-straight game and are now tied with the Washington Mystics for the worst record in the league with idle 6-22 win-loss records.
The Sun faces the Chicago Sky next while the Sparks battle fellow cellar-dwellers Mystics in their next game.
