Flight Over Phoenix: Liberty Withstand Griner, Mercury with 43 From Stewart

Sustained by 43 points from Breanna Stewart, the New York Liberty withstood a feisty challenge from Brittney Griner, Diana Taurasi, and the Phoenix Mercury on Wednesday night.

NEW YORK-The WNBA's finest from both the past and present put on a thrilling show in the New York Liberty's return to Barclays Center on Wednesday night.

Back home after a three-game road trip, the Liberty withstood a furious challenge from the Phoenix Mercury, prevailing against their fellow charter franchise by a 99-95 final in Brooklyn.

In front of a crowd that featured WNBA legends Sue Bird and Teresa Weatherspoon, the Liberty (12-4) enjoyed another stellar showing from MVP contender Breanna Stewart, whose 43-point, 12-rebound output was enough to spare the hosts from disaster. The Liberty led by as many as 20 before staving off a Phoenix comeback effort that even afforded them a small, late lead in a game that New York otherwise led wire-to-wire. Stewart had 16 of the Liberty's final 18 points en route to victory.

With her tally, Stewart now owns the two highest-scoring games in Liberty history, coming up just two short of the franchise record 45 she had in the home opener on May 21. Stewart is also the first New Yorker to have at least 40 points in multiple games and just the sixth in WNBA history to pull off the feat in a single season (the first since Liz Cambage in 2018). 

Phoenix (3-13), in its fourth game under interim head coach Nikki Blue, enjoyed strong efforts from its two legendary talents, neither of whom played in the teams' first showdown last month. Diana Taurasi had a season-best 23 points while Brittney Griner had 21. Off the bench, former New Yorker Michaela Onyenwere had 19 points.

The Liberty will play their final game before the 2023 WNBA All-Star break on Saturday afternoon when they take on the Seattle Storm for the third time this season (2 p.m. ET, ESPN).

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Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags

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