NY Liberty vs. Connecticut Sun preview: A morning battle for first place

It was going great, until it stopped going. On Saturday afternoon, the New York Liberty had a chance to extend their winning streak to six games and complete the season sweep of the Indiana Fever. Unfortunately for them, they let go of the rope at the worst possible team. New York went cold late and the Fever got their first win over the Liberty in two years. At 17-4, the Liberty are still atop the WNBA standings. But it’s a bit crowded at the top.

That’s because today’s opponent is right on their heels. The Connecticut Sun went through a bit of a lull last week, but they’re still one of the best teams in the league. They improved their record to 17-4 after a win against the Atlanta Dream on Sunday in Uncasville.

Where to follow the game

MY9 on TV. Liberty Live, FOX Local, and the YES App on streaming. I hope everyone sets their timers as this party’s getting started at 11 AM.

Injuries

Nyara Sabally is making progress, so we’ll see if she makes her return today.

Moriah Jefferson underwent surgery on her ankle and is out.

The game

The Liberty won the first matchup.

The more you win, the more you can experiment with different combinations. That’s what Sandy Brondello has been doing, and we’ve seen it work out. On Saturday, Kennedy Burke was the only player to finish with a positive +/- as the lineup with her, Sabrina Ionescu, JJ, Betnijah Laney-Hamilton, and Kayla Thornton helped get the team back into the game. Optionality is a big part of any team’s success, and having a player you can turn to in a pinch and trust like Burke goes a long way in accomplishing all of your goals.

It’ll be an MVP caliber showdown at the power forward position. Breanna Stewart will look to bounce back from a rough by her standards Saturday. Stewie only went 3-11 from the field and missed some wide open, momentum swinging three pointers in the second half. Her three point shot had been popping up again, but she’s gone 0-10 from deep in her last two games. Even with this latest slump, you want your best player to keep firing and not let her confidence waver.

That’s going to be essential as she matches up with Alyssa Thomas. AT keeps on keeping on and she’s someone that creates so much havoc when she’s driving to the basket. For the Liberty, the goal will be protecting the rim and keeping a body in front of Thomas when she gets a head of steam.

Comebacks are a beautiful thing. When you’ve been knocked down, getting back up and continuing the fight is inspirational. And when you’re coming back from the most devastating injury in basketball, it’s even sweeter. Brionna Jones is heading to the All Star Game next weekend, and a year removed from her Achilles tendon tear, she will be one of the biggest fan favorites at the game. She spoke about her journey recently with the Hartford Courant:

“I knew that coming back in, it wasn’t going to be easy trying to get back in shape, but it was easier when I had my teammates behind me with their support and staying in my ear. They were like ‘Bri, you’ve got to take these shots. We need you to do this.’ And I always want to do whatever I can for my team. But to be able to be back and playing at this level, it’s unbelievable almost.”

The Sun frontcourt is imposing, so Jonquel Jones will be essential to the Liberty’s chances. JJ only scored six points (including a surprising 2-6 from the free throw line), but she filled up the stat sheet with 12 rebounds, three steals, and two assists in 31 minutes. The Liberty have continued to work to find good shots for JJ within the flow of the offense, and they’ll have to be better at it this morning. On Saturday, they took 42 three pointers and most of them came within the flow of the offense. However, when you live from behind the three point line, you’re not going from paint to great. Look for the Liberty to attack the paint more and find Jones more room to operate with.

Player to watch: DeWanna Bonner

Writing can be a funny job sometimes. You have an idea, you start putting it together ahead of time so you can publish on time and then you go from there. It’s a sign of good preparation and getting your work done early is always a good thing. However, sometimes circumstances cause you to throw everything out.

I had initially planned to write about DeWanna Bonner’s low three point shooting. Going into Sunday’s game, DB was at her lowest percentage from three point range since the 2019 season with the Phoenix Mercury. However, DB went out and made a career high seven threes on Sunday afternoon. Life is funny that way! For Bonner, she’s CT’s best perimeter scoring option and the player they turn to to find scoring. If she doesn’t have it going, offense becomes a LOT harder to come by for the Sun. She draws so much attention from opposing defenses, and she’ll need to have the touch early against this excellent Liberty defense.

For the Liberty, it’s such a luxury to have Betnijah Laney-Hamilton doing everything on the court. Bee paced the Liberty scoring attack with 20 points and four made three pointers on Saturday. She also got the primary assignment on Caitlin Clark and made things hard on the ascendant superstar. Bee will likely draw the Bonner assignment and she’s had experience guarding her over the years.

And to add on to the writing is funny theme, all of that about Betnijah Laney-Hamilton is out the door as she’s dealing with a knee injury. Sandy Brondello reported in pregame that her knee became puffy on the train ride in. With this being a back-to-back, the Liberty are airing on the side of caution. Kayla Thornton will start in Laney’s place today as she and Leonie Fiebich will handle forward duties for the Liberty today.

From the Vault

On Saturday night, John Cena announced his retirement from WWE and professional wrestling. Big Match John has plenty of classics under his belt, so let’s pull one up from 2016 at the ‘clays!

More reading: Swish Appeal, CT Insider, Hartford Courant, Chicago Sun Times, The Strickland, The Local W, New York Daily News, New York Post, The Athletic. Fansided, Just Women’s Sports, SI All Knicks, Winsidr, Her Hoop Stats, CBS Sports, and The Next

• New York Liberty Game Notes - New York Liberty