Sabrina Ionescu scored 23 points and Breanna Stewart added 18, fueling the undefeated New York Liberty to an 85-66 victory over the visiting Chicago Sky on Tuesday.
Ionescu made 9 of 14 shots from the floor and added seven assists and four steals as New York (9-0) improved to 3-0 in WNBA Commissioner Cup play.
Stewart also had seven rebounds and five assists for the Liberty, who made 47.9 percent of their shots from the floor.
Kennedy Burke sank all three of her 3-point shots to highlight her 15-point performance off the bench for the Liberty, who defeated Chicago (2-6) for the second time this season. New York breezed to a 99-74 victory over the Sky on May 22.
New York’s Nyara Sabally scored nine points while making her first career WNBA start in place of Jonquel Jones, who sat out due to a right ankle injury.
Chicago’s Angel Reese made 8 of 13 shots to finish with a season-high 17 points. She also had 11 rebounds.
Ariel Atkins added 11 points for the Sky, who committed 22 turnovers while playing in their first game since Courtney Vandersloot sustained a season-ending torn ACL.
With French Open champion Coco Gauff in attendance at Barclays Center, New York bolted out of the blocks by racing to a 12-0 lead. Sabally and Stewart highlighted the surge by scoring five points apiece.
Ionescu made a three-point play, a mid-range jumper and a 3-pointer during the final three minutes of the first quarter to give the Liberty a 26-15 advantage at the end of the quarter.
New York kept its foot on the gas as Leonie Fiebich sank a 3-pointer and Burke did the same on the ensuing possession late in the second quarter. Burke added another from the corner with 1.4 seconds to play, staking the Liberty to a 52-32 lead at halftime.
New York scored 17 straight points to bridge the third and fourth quarters and put the game out of reach.
–Field Level Media
