Sports
Liberty hold off Sun in Game 4 to reach first WNBA Finals since 2002 – New York Post
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UNCASVILLE, Conn. — Sandy Brondello tried to avoid mentioning it. Even thinking about it. She had allowed her mind to wander that first day this edition of the Liberty met, with the talk of championships and titles and everything the superteam could accomplish. But then Brondello shifted those thoughts to the back of her mind until the franchise’s 21-year WNBA Finals drought ended Sunday.
The Liberty’s season, ideally, always revolved around what could unfold in the second and third weeks of October, but it would take time to get there. They needed everything to blend together, to mesh at the right time, and after an 87-84 victory clinched their semifinal series against the Connecticut Sun, the Liberty inched one step closer to their first-ever title — they’ll meet the Las Vegas Aces starting Oct. 8 — and New York’s first basketball championship since the Nets won the ABA title in 1976.
Unlike Game 2, when the Liberty scored 37 points in the first quarter, this one came down to the final seconds. Connecticut’s Tyasha Harris’ 3-pointer bounced in off the rim to make it a one-point game. Breanna Stewart, who scored 27 points, knocked down two free throws with six seconds left. And when Tiffany Hayes couldn’t get a shot off in the final moments, Brondello, finally, felt relieved.
“This organization hasn’t been [to the finals] for such a long time,” Brondello said, “and that’s really, really special.”
But of all the scenarios the Liberty could’ve scripted, what unfolded Sunday was as unique as any. Betnijah Laney wasn’t the headliner of the superteam. Her role had been changed to the point where she wasn’t even a primary scoring option. But she led the Liberty with 15 points at halftime and hit the 3-pointer that put the Liberty up eight in the third quarter.
Then, with the Liberty leading by six early in the fourth, Alyssa Thomas got tangled up with Jonquel Jones (25 points, 15 rebounds) underneath the basket and exited in pain. Thomas was Connecticut’s star, the one whose teammates think was snubbed in the MVP results. The way she walked gingerly off the court appeared to extinguish any hope the Sun had left. But they still made a comeback and took the lead after Thomas, somehow, returned. She still finished with a triple-double, too.
“It’s not easy to come and win on their home court,” Sabrina Ionescu said, “especially when they’re fighting for their season.”
There was a reason the Sun had made five consecutive semifinals, and if anything, their success marked a standard the Liberty have tried to reach. The Aces, the reigning champions, are another one. The Liberty kept pace with a franchise-record 32 wins, but the playoffs, they knew, were different. That’s why Breanna Stewart (27 points, nine rebounds) warned her teammates is would be a roller coaster.
It wasn’t easy against the Mystics, a deceiving No. 7 seed, in the first round. It wasn’t easy when the Liberty lost Game 1 to the Sun. It wasn’t even easy Sunday in Game 4, when the Liberty trailed by 10. They still took the lead before halftime, though, on a last-second shot by Ionescu (nine points, seven assists, five rebounds) and then built a double-digit lead of their own.
“These things aren’t easy and getting to the finals is not an easy thing,” Stewart said. “So I just want everyone to really enjoy it and embrace it and understand that this is the biggest moment of our entire season now. We want to make sure that this is when we’re at our best.”
Plenty has changed since the Liberty’s last WNBA Finals appearance. At that point, just six seasons into their existence, these postseason berths were normal. They had made four WNBA Finals. But then they went into a stretch of just three playoff berths in eight seasons, starting with 2013, that only changed when the superteam started to form.
Drafting Ionescu No. 1 overall in 2020 was the first step. Adding Laney the next offseason was another. Trading for Jones, signing Stewart and securing Courtney Vandersloot served as the final pieces.
“All I can say is it feels good,” Laney said. “It feels amazing. … Especially from where we started, being knocked out the first round every time and to now be here with everyone, we’re in the Finals.”
So now, for the second and third weeks in October, the Liberty will be exactly where they always imagined. The WNBA’s ultimate series will make a stop at Barclays Center.
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