Behind 20 points from Breanna Stewart plus 16 points and 10 rebounds from Sabrina Ionescu, the New York Liberty led the Las Vegas Aces nearly wire to wire on their way to an 87-76 road win on Tuesday.
New York (12-6) built a lead of as many as 19 points in the second half, taking control in a third quarter that saw Las Vegas coach Becky Hammon receive a technical foul when she chased a referee down at the baseline to contest a no-call.
The fiery exchange came in a pivotal stretch for the Aces (12-5). New York went on a 7-0 run capped by a Han Xu 3-pointer shortly after the technical foul.
Han shot 4-of-4 from the floor en route to 12 points off the bench. She was one of five New York scorers in double figures and one of five Liberty shooters to connect on multiple 3-point attempts.
New York knocked down 13 of 31 (41.9%) from long distance, led by Leonie Fiebich’s 4-of-5 success. Fiebich scored all 12 of her points from beyond the arc.
Ionescu, who finished 2-for-6 from deep, effectively put the game away when she nailed a triple from the left wing to end an 8-0 Aces run. That hoop with 2:17 to go put New York up 81-70. Ionescu then assisted Stewart on another 3-pointer on the next Liberty possession.
Stewart’s point total led all scorers in a game featuring the three players to account for the last six WNBA Most Valuable Player awards. Complementing Stewart, the 2023 MVP, was New York’s Jonquel Jones, the 2021 MVP, who scored 14 points.
Four-time MVP A’ja Wilson finished with 16 points for Las Vegas, but she was held to 7-of-18 shooting from the floor. Wilson grabbed nine rebounds in the loss.
Jackie Young led Las Vegas with 19 points, and Cheyenne Parker-Tyus shot 5-for-7 from the floor on the way to 14 points off the bench. Chelsea Gray rounded out the Aces’ double-figure scorers with 11 points.
–Field Level Media
