The New York Liberty’s regular season ended the way too many of their home games have gone lately: with a loss, this one an 83-65 thumping by the Atlanta Dream on Wednesday night.
The result mattered more for the scoreboard than the standings. New York was already locked into the #8 seed, and the bigger concern sitting over the night was Breanna Stewart’s left knee.
Stewart was listed as questionable with soreness after tweaking it in the previous game, but she sat out as a precaution. Chris DeMarco called it “precautionary” and didn’t offer a firm timeline, saying, “I’m not sure yet on the workload piece or the availability.
Just, it’s soreness right now, a play that happened in the last game, not feeling great. But yeah, hopefully she’ll be ready for the playoffs.”
That leaves Stewart with five off-days before Game 1 of the WNBA Playoffs, and while DeMarco wasn’t ready to lock anything in, the idea of her missing a playoff game remains hard to imagine. For the Liberty, the priority now is simply getting her right.
On the floor, though, Wednesday was messy from the jump. New York turned it over 15 times in the first half, and Atlanta took advantage.
The Liberty struggled to keep possession clean, and the offense never found much rhythm. The game also turned choppy, with 37 combined fouls and both teams shooting just 23.4% from deep.
There were a few rough sequences that summed up the night. Han Xu got saddled with multiple bad possessions, including one in which she ended up heaving a 25-foot soccer-throw-in while under pressure from a Dream defender. Sabrina Ionescu also caught Angel Reese in the mouth with an elbow, leading to free throws for Reese - before that became her last action of the night, as she played just 17 minutes.
The Liberty’s trouble didn’t stop there. Jonquel Jones stepped on a fan’s foot while backpedaling from a 3-point attempt and left the game after appearing to roll her ankle.
New York was down 18 with 14 minutes left when it happened. DeMarco said, “She rolled her ankle, made contact with a fan, but she’s in good spirits.
She’s doing well, it sounds like. But she’s being evaluated right now.”
Even with the starters out and the result no longer in doubt, New York’s reserves gave the crowd something to watch in a long fourth quarter packed with replay reviews. Marine Fauthoux finished with 14 points, three rebounds and four assists in 17 minutes.
Allen knocked down a couple more threes. Raquel Carrera, starting in Stewart’s place, scored 9 points with 5 rebounds and 4 assists without missing a shot after shaking off a quiet start.
DeMarco praised that group afterward, saying, “I’m really proud of the way Raquel played, Bec played, our bench played, getting back in the game, showing a lot of fight.”
New York trimmed a 20-point deficit to seven more than once in the fourth, but Atlanta held firm and kept pushing for home-court advantage in the first round. Allisha Gray led the Dream with 24 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists on 8-of-17 shooting, and Naz Hillmon added 16. Reese’s night was brief after the elbow sequence.
The Liberty finished the regular season 26-18 and head into the playoffs with the #8 seed and a matchup against the Minnesota Lynx. The summer wasn’t pretty, but the postseason is here now.
Before the game, the Liberty also honored Rebecca Allen, who announced that this season, her 11th in the WNBA, would be her last. Allen spent seven seasons with New York - three at Madison Square Garden, two in Westchester and two at Barclays Center - and Wednesday marked her final regular-season appearance with the team.
She said, “It was super meaningful to come back,” adding, “It’s the reason why I really wanted to sign back here, it really helps me put that bow on my career. It’s where I started, it’s a place that I’ve got a lot of love for.
I like when you do something that’s more than just about playing the game. I love when it’s got that deeper meaning, where I truly feel like New York is like a second home for me.”
Allen also said, “People remember how they felt. You don’t always remember stats from games and all that. So I want to be that person that was good in the locker room, a friend to people as well, my kindness.”
Final score: Atlanta Dream 83, New York Liberty 65.
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