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Betnijah Laney-Hamilton returned to the starting lineup for the first time since July 6 and led the New York Liberty with 18 points in a 77-70 win over the Seattle Storm on Thursday night in Brooklyn, N.Y.

Laney-Hamilton was sidelined by a right knee injury that required surgery and kept her out about six weeks until her return Aug. 26. After five days of rest, the Liberty (28-6) also had to knock off some rust against the Storm. New York’s 38.6 percent field-goal shooting performance sat below the team’s 44.7 percent average on the season, but a strong night of defense helped propel the Liberty to their second win in a row.

Sabrina Ionescu added 17 points and eight assists. Jonquel Jones led New York in the paint on both sides of the court, grabbing eight rebounds and blocking five shots, on top of 15 points on offense.

After New York built a nine-point advantage in the second quarter, Seattle (20-14) fought back in the third quarter and pulled into the lead, turning what looked like a Liberty runaway into a back-and-forth battle. The two sides had six lead changes in the third quarter, trading baskets until New York pulled away in the final 1:21 minutes of the period for a 62-57 edge.

The Storm’s Jewell Loyd and the Liberty’s Breanna Stewart entered the night each averaging 20.5 points per game to lead their respective sides. Through three quarters on Thursday, the two All-Stars combined for only 10 points.

Stewart especially struggled offensively, missing her first eight shots from the field, ending the drought with a layup with 44 seconds remaining in the third quarter. However, in the fourth quarter, Stewart responded by scoring 10 straight points for New York. Stewart ended the game with 14 points on 5-of-16 shooting.

Skylar Diggins-Smith led the Storm in scoring with 21 points, Gabby Williams had 17 and Ezi Magbegor had 13 along with four blocks.

Joining Loyd (3-of-8, six points) in the scoring struggles for Seattle was Nneka Ogwumike who scored less than 10 points for only the third time this season, scoring nine in the defeat. Loyd failed to reach double-digit scoring for only the second time this season.

Both teams are back at it this weekend with two potential playoff matchups. The Storm welcome the Phoenix Mercury on Saturday, and Sunday is a replay of the 2023 WNBA Finals when the Las Vegas Aces travel to Brooklyn.

–Field Level Media