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Liberty downs Fever again

By Winners OnlyPublished 3 years ago 4 min read
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Michaela Onyenwere scores 11 in New York win.

New York 73, Indiana 65

The New York Liberty looked to win again in the rematch from opening night, Friday, against the host Indiana Fever. On Sunday, New York got off to a solid start scoring the first five points of the game and turning that into a 20-12 lead with 5:19 to play in the first quarter. Indiana made it a 20-15 game after a timeout when Kelsey Mitchell scored her ninth point on a three-pointer.

Below: Kelsey Mitchell

New York captured its first double-digit lead at 25-15 after rookie Michaela Onyenwere hit a three and Reshanda Gray scored on a layup. The Liberty continued to dominate the first quarter closing it with a 31-18 lead. They outshot Indiana 57.9 percent to 38.9 percent. Liberty forward Betnijah Laney who scored 30 points in game one had 11 points in the first quarter. Onyenwere posted 18 in the opener, continued her success with eight points in the first quarter. Both teams had six assists in the first quarter but New York had just one turnover while Indiana had four.

More of the same continued after the second quarter began as New York established a 39-20 lead. From that point Indiana caught fire offensively and clamped down defensively going on an 13-1 run. During that stretch rookie Kysre Gondrezick who struggled with her shot going 0-3 in the first half, was able to tally two assists off of the bench which helped to fuel the run. As the Indiana defense tightened up the Liberty found themselves in a scoring drought. Sami Whitcome hit a three pointer with 8:01 to go in the second quarter, giving the Liberty its 19-point lead that was mentioned before. They never hit another field goal for the rest of the half, scoring on two free-throws thereafter. Indiana closed the half on its surge that made the score 41-35, with New York holding on to a slim lead as it went into the break.

Below: Betnijah Laney

Laney only had one point in the second quarter giving her 12 at the half. Indiana outscored New York 17-10 in the period just before the half. Indiana was led in scoring by Mitchell's 11 points at the intermission. Point guard Danielle Robinson had nine points, three assists and two steals at halftime. Fever center Teaira McCowan looked to be on her way to another double-double with six points and five rebounds in the first half.

After halftime Indiana narrowed New York's lead 41-37 but New York finally started to wake out of its offensive coma going on a 9-4 run to go back up by nine points. After amassing a lead as much as 13 points, New York finished the third quarter up 58-49. Laney woke up in a turnover ridden quarter by her team. She withstood the struggles and found herself with 17 points after the third quarter. Onyenwere kept things steady making four of her first five shots to score 11 points in the first three quarters. New York had just one turnover in the first quarter before having 17 combined giveaways in the second and third quarters.

Indana's Robinson and Mitchell shared the team lead with 13 points apiece going into the fourth quarter. The Liberty was able to fend off the Fever for the remainder of the game. Both teams had a mountain of turnovers as New York ended the contest with 22, while Indiana had 21.

Laney led all scorers once more with 20 points but this time she struggled with six turnovers and shot 6-17 overall. Liberty point guard Sabrina Ionescu also had a hard night offensively with 12 points, shooting 3-9, eight turnovers and just four assists. Onyenwere scored 11 points in her second pro game. She made four of her seven shot attempts. Jazmine Jones was a hero off of the bench for New York with 10 points, two assists and two steals.

Indiana was led in scoring by Kelsey Mitchell's 16 points. Robinson had 13 points and Tiffany Mitchell had 12. Unfortunately they combined to shoot 13-41.

Indiana was led in rebounds by Jantel Lavender's 15 and McCowan's 10. Both had eight and six points respectively.

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