By: Elijah Hamilton
In game one of the WNBA Playoffs, the New York Liberty came away with an upset victory, 98-91, against the Chicago Sky last night to take a 1-0 series lead.
It was a close contest as each battled hard to take the lead in the series. The Liberty would pull away late in the fourth, scoring 13 points, with Chicago missing 10 of its last 11 shots. The 13-point run was highlighted by Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu, who scored five points. The Liberty were down big but Marine Johannes’ over shoulder pass to Natasha Howard sparked the comeback.
Sabrina Ionescu was big time in her first playoff game, dropping 22 points with seven rebounds and six assists. Natasha Howard also chipped in 22 points, Betnijah Laney added 17 points, and Stefanie Dolson scored 13 points for New York.
“We’ve been in this situation all year, and early on, we were losing these games,” Ionescu said. “But we found out what it takes to win, and we showed that tonight. We gotta do it again.”
For the Sky, Kahleah Copper led with 21 points. Allie Quigley scored 18 points; Candace Parker had 17 points, ten rebounds, and five assists.
Last night’s win marked the first playoff win for the New York Liberty since 2015. They could close the series against Chicago in the next game on Saturday.