Jonquel Jones scored a game-high 20 points and the host New York Liberty clinched a berth in the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup championship game with an 86-64 victory over the Washington Mystics on Sunday.
Breanna Stewart added 14 points, a game-high 12 rebounds and a career-high seven blocks for New York.
It was the seventh straight win for the Liberty (10-4, 5-0 Commissioner’s Cup).
Washington (5-7, 2-3) was led by Michaela Onyenwere, who had 17 points, and Sonia Citron, who pumped in 12.
The Liberty also got good news with the return of four-time All-Star point guard Sabrina Ionescu, who scored five points in 26 minutes. It was just the second game of the season and the first since May 24 for Ionescu, who has missed time first with a foot injury and then with a bad back.
Ionescu, normally a starter, played off the bench as part of a deep Liberty lineup. In fact, the Liberty played three former All-Stars off their bench, including Satou Sabally (2021, 2023, 2025) and Betnijah Laney-Hamilton (2021). Sabally scored seven points and dished six assists, and Laney-Hamilton had four points.
Washington played without starter Kiki Iriafen, who has a sprained right ankle.
The Mystics led by four points early. However, New York made 6 of 10 3-pointers in the first quarter to take a 20-13 lead. Washington shot just 29.4% overall and 1 of 3 on 3-pointers in the opening quarter.
The Liberty stretched their lead to 36-28 at halftime, by which point Stewart already had a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
New York won the third quarter, but just barely, pushing its advantage to 63-50. Washington shot much better in the third, going 4 of 6 from deep, which allowed the Mystics to stay in the game.
But the Liberty cruised from there, scoring the first seven points of the fourth quarter and taking a 20-point lead on Jones’ long 3-pointer at the 7:09 mark.
–Field Level Media
