Aw, Heck! Lynx Bite Liberty In Final Game of Homestand
NEW YORK-Perhaps looking to relax after playing four games in six days this week, the New York Liberty experienced Miller Time a bit too early with the Minnesota Lynx in town.
New Jersey native Diamond Miller took center stage alongside Kayla McBride in her first professional contest in the tri-state area, as the Lynx took a XX-XX decision from the Liberty at Barclays Center on Friday night. The game was originally scheduled for June 7 but re-scheduled due to atmospheric haze from Canadian wildfires.
Sabrina Ionescu led all scorers with 31 points on the Liberty end while Breanna Stewart had 23 despite a 5-of-19 night from the field. Load management partly defined the Liberty's affairs, as they opted to sit Courtney Vandersloot for the first time this season.
Miller, the second overall pick of last spring's WNBA Draft, had 20 points in the win while McBride sank 11-of-14 from the field to score 26 points. Another freshman, second-rounder Dorka Juhasz, had a 13-point, 10-rebound double-double as the Lynx (12-13) improved to 12-7 after an 0-6 start.
Seeking to cap off a four-game homestand on a perfect note, the Liberty (18-6) opened the game on a 15-5 run before Minnesota closed the opening period of a 17-2 run to take a lead it'd never relinquish. That advantage became as fat as 17 before a valiant Liberty effort chipped it down all the way to one in the fourth quarter. One more McBride triple, her fourth of the night, created a six-point lead just beyond the two-minute mark that more or less sealed the deal.
The Liberty return to action on Sunday late afternoon when a three-game road trip begins with the first of two games against the Los Angeles Sparks (4 p.m. ET, ESPN)
Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags
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