Liberty All-Stars help avenge Cup loss

Jonquel Jones, Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu found out Tuesday that they were WNBA All-Stars.

Then, the trio went out and shined brightest against the Minnesota Lynx in front of 10,846 satisfied customers at Downtown’s Barclays Center.

Jones put up a game-high 21 points and 12 rebounds, Stewart had 17 points and 17 boards while Ionescu, battling through health issues, added 17 points as well, spearheading New York past Minnesota, 76-67, and avenging last week’s loss to the Lynx in the Commissioner’s Cup title game.

“This is a team that kind of had our number and we wanted to show what we can do when we play our style of basketball,” said Jones, referring to the Liberty’s two defeats to Minnesota this season.

“Obviously, this was a huge game. It’s a regular-season game,” added Ionescu, who also found out Tuesday that she was the Eastern Conference’s Player of the Month. “But they’re 2-0 against us and this was personal,”

The Lynx (14-5) appeared to have the Liberty (17-3) right where they wanted them yet again when Cecilia Zandalasini made a layup to put Minnesota up 65-61 with eight minutes left in regulation.

But New York clamped down on defense and went on a game-deciding 15-0 burst thereafter.

Stewart, the league’s reigning Most Valuable Player, accounted for nine of those points. Her free throws with 50 ticks left on the clock gave the Liberty a 76-65 advantage and extinguished any hope of a Minnesota comeback.

The Lynx, who had won all but one of their previous 10 contests, including last Tuesday’s 84-89 triumph over New York in the Cup Final at UBS Arena on Long Island, only managed 25 points in the second half.

Eight of those came in the fourth quarter, when the Liberty proved they were still the team to beat in the WNBA, boasting the league’s top record and improving on the best start in franchise history.

“We can be a great defensive team and we committed to it,” noted Liberty coach Sandy Brondello.

“We…