Liberty Quell Storm Behind Breanna Stewart History

The New York Liberty capped off a busy stretch with a much-needed win over the Seattle Storm.

Aug 28, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart (30) dribbles the ball against the LA Sparks in the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports / Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Breanna Stewart once again came through big in the Pacific Northwest, albeit in the New York Liberty's uniform rather than that of the local Seattle Storm.

A dominant showing from Stewart allowed the Liberty to end a somewhat turbulent stretch on a high note, as the team earned a 98-85 victory over the Storm at Climate Pledge Arena. The win allowed the Liberty (27-6) to get back on track after a surprising loss to last-place Los Angeles and they also stretched their lead in the race for the WNBA's top seed to 3 1/2 games ahead of Connecticut and Minnesota.

Stewart scored 32 points, becoming the first New Yorker to score at least 30 in consecutive games. She also has 12 with at least 30 in her Liberty career, tied for second-most in franchise history with Cappie Pondexter. The leader, Sabrina Ionescu, fell short of adding to her record but had her best game since coming back from a neck ailment, scoring 25 points while falling two assists and rebounds short of another triple-double. Ionescu also hit at least one three-pointer for the 56th consecutive game, setting the second-longest streak in WNBA history. Only the 66 set by Ivory Latta remains.

Rebounding was the key both literally and figuratively for the Liberty on Friday: New York hauled in 17 offensive rebounds, converting more than half of their 33 misses into second chances. It came on a night where Jonquel Jones returned from a one-game absence due to an illness but she managed to leave an impact in even a compacted sample size: Jones hauled in 11 rebounds in just over 20 minutes of work and she was one of five New Yorkers with multiple offensive boards.

The Liberty's final margin of plus-28 on the overall glass set a single-game franchise record and is tied for the sixth-best in any WNBA game. Ionescu provided perhaps the most notable one in the second half, one where she put up a successful double from a seated position after getting her own miss.

To cap off the trio of triumphant returns, Betnijah Laney-Hamilton was a team-best plus-26 off the bench as se continued to make her own back from the knee injury that kept her out a month. Laney-Hamilton camp up particularly big toward the end of the game, as her defense ended the offensive shootout that took over the first three periods, where each side scored at least 20 points.

Despite the loss, Seattle (19-12) was one of two teams, along with Las Vegas, to clinch a spot in the upcoming WNBA Playoffs. Skylar Diggins-Smith had 26 points in defeat while Jewell Loyd had 20, though she shot only 5-of-17 from the field.

With a busy stretch of six games in a dozen days behind them, the Liberty get a decent break, as their next game comes against the same Storm next Thursday (7 p.m. ET, WNYW/Amazon Prime Video).

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