Sabrina Ionescu roars after burying another 3-pointer and the Fever during the Liberty’s overtime victory in Indiana Wednesday. AP Photo by Michael Conroy
Two nights before defending her Skills Challenge title in Las Vegas, New York Liberty All-Star point guard Sabrina Ionescu made sure Downtown Brooklyn’s WNBA franchise would meet the Aces for the Commissioner’s Cup crown in August.
Ionescu scored eight of her game-high 34 points in overtime Wednesday as the Liberty clinched the Eastern Conference’s spot in the coveted championship game with a 95-87 victory over the Indiana Fever in front of 6,123 fans at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
“The entire team leans on her,” New York forward Jonquel Jones said of Ionescu. “We’ve seen it before. She’s a clutch player. … Definitely our go-to person late (in the game).”
The two-time All-Star, who will vie for her second consecutive skills title alongside teammate Courtney Vandersloot Friday night in Sin City, saved her best for last on a day the Liberty (14-4) blew an 18-point, fourth-quarter lead.
Indiana’s Aliyah Boston forced the extra session by drilling a 3-pointer at the buzzer before Ionescu took over.
She snapped the 80-80 regulation tie by draining a 26-footer off a feed from All-Star Captain Breanna Stewart and connected from 3-point range again with 1:19 remaining to put New York in front 91-87.
Her free throws with 16 ticks left capped the scoring as the Liberty averted potential disaster and earned a berth against Western Conference Commissioner’s Cup representative Las Vegas on Aug. 15.
“I’m not tired, so that’s really what it is,” Ionescu said of her late-game assault. “We push ourselves in practice. The goal is to be the best-conditioned team.”
Ionescu, who scored a career-high 37 points at Atlanta on June 9 by drilling a franchise-record eight 3-pointers, was nearly as prolific in this contest.
She became the second player in league history to shoot at least 50 percent…
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