The reigning WNBA champion New York Liberty have every reason to feel good right now.
New York began the season 9-0 but slumped with six losses in a nine-game stretch, in part due to injuries.
Now the Liberty (16-6) have won four straight games — and better yet, 6-foot-6 center Jonquel Jones is back in the fold as they prepare to host the Phoenix Mercury on Friday night.
Jones returned from an ankle injury on Tuesday, scoring 18 points and grabbing nine rebounds in a 98-84 home win over the Indiana Fever.
“It’s a happy day,” Liberty coach Sandy Brondello said. “JJ’s back.”
Jones, the league MVP in 2021, has played just 10 of New York’s 22 games this season. Now she rejoins New York’s top two scorers: All-Stars Breanna Stewart (19.6) and Sabrina Ionescu (18.4).
In addition, Liberty point guard Natasha Cloud ranks fourth in the league in assists (5.9). The Liberty also boast four players who are shooting better than 40 percent on 3-pointers: starters Leonie Fiebich (52.2) and Jones (43.6), and backups Kennedy Burke (49.4) and Rebekah Gardner (41.7).
Meanwhile, the Mercury (15-8) are in third place in the league, just 1 1/2 games behind New York.
The Mercury are also 2-0 against New York this season, beating the Liberty 89-81 on June 19 and 106-91 on June 27.
Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas was huge in the two games against the Liberty, averaging 17.5 points, 12.0 rebounds and 11.0 assists.
Satou Sabally, Phoenix’s 6-foot-4 center, averaged 20.0 points and 7.5 rebounds against New York. Sabally, who missed four recent games due to an ankle injury, returned to action on Wednesday and scored 13 points in a 90-79 home loss to the Atlanta Dream.
The Mercury on Wednesday also got guard Kahleah Copper back from a hamstring strain. But guard Monique Akoa Makani was out while recovering from a concussion.
“We’ve had two or three starters out until recently,” Mercury coach Nate Tibbetts said. “That weighs on you.”
Indeed, the Mercury have lost two straight games, shooting less than 39 percent from the floor in each contest.
For the Liberty, Stewart has averaged 26.0 points in the two games against Phoenix. Ionescu has averaged just 12.5 points, and Jones played only nine minutes in the first game and missed the second.
–Field Level Media
