The New York Liberty struggled on both ends of the court in a 79-60 loss to the Golden State Valkyries on Thursday night at Barclays Center.
The Valkyries suffocated the Liberty with quick and aggressive defense, which left New York unable to establish a flow on offense. The Liberty shot just 30% from the field and their 60-point total marked the team’s season-low.
“We have to score,” Breanna Stewart said. “60 points is like, nothing.”
Jonquel Jones led the way for the Liberty with a team-high 18 points. The star center knocked down four three-pointers and blocked 3 shots in the loss.
The Valkyries, however, responded to Jones’ success with a defensive adjustment that held the former MVP to just 2 points on 2 shots in the second and third quarters combined.
“With a team like this with the physicality and just really making it tough, after a while that can make it really hard,” Stewart said. “We had the effort and energy that we wanted, but we gotta knock down some shots, or we gotta find an easier way to score.”
Stewart had a difficult time playing inside, but stayed aggressive and did much of her scoring from the free throw line. Stewart ended with 16 points and brought in 6 rebounds, but it wasn’t enough.
The defeat came on Stewart’s 32nd birthday, as the packed arena sang “Happy Birthday” in celebration during the first half.
Guard Veronica Burton was the Valkyries’ offensive maestro as the team emphasized its ball movement. Burton dished out 13 assists and committed 0 turnovers as she found her teammates either wide open for an easy basket or in position to nail a contested shot over Liberty defenders.
Valkyries guard Cecilia Zandalasini was on fire to start the game and scored 14 points, including four three-pointers, in just the first half. Zandalasini led all scorers with 20 points and brought in 5 rebounds.
Sabrina Ionescu had a tough night and shot just 2-for-12 from the field, including 1-for-9 from distance. The Liberty superstar scored only 7 points, but gave out 4 assists.
“I think it’s more of a learning experience than disappointment for me personally,” Ionescu said. “Understanding the way that [the Valkyries] play, how hard they play… [It] challenges you, but makes you better for sure.”
As the Liberty attempted to make a fourth-quarter run, they switched to a full-court trap defense that forced Golden State to speed up their offense, although it didn’t lead to success.
Liberty guard Rebecca Gardner embraced this new playing style and had an impressive performance in just 17 minutes of play. Gardner stole a pass, grabbed two offensive rebounds and made both of her shots on the night.
“To me, it’s fun when you can get up and press and get out in transition,” Gardner said. “I would love if we could do more of that going forward.”
The Liberty fell to 23-16 on the year and will look to bounce back at home against the Chicago Sky on Saturday as they continue to fight for playoff positioning.
