Liberty close out first half in style with win against the Indiana Fever, 98-77

Although Caitlin Clark was out, the New York Liberty still delivered plenty of highlights as they cruised to their third straight win.

Photo by Ishika Samant/Getty Images

Every great team has to deal with a trap game. When you get word the opponent’s best player will be out of action, you sometimes loosen up and let go of the rope. It’s human and it happens to the best of us. If you can avoid the trap, you can handle business in a major way.

Without Caitlin Clark, the Indiana Fever are a much different team. When CC missed the Commissioner’s Cup, the team was able to rally and defeat last year’s Cup winner and WNBA Finals runner up, the Minnesota Lynx. The team was without Clark and this time, they had to do it on the second leg of a road back-to-back against a New York Liberty team looking for some payback.

The Fever jumped out to a 2-0 lead as former Liberty star Natasha Howard made the first shot of the game. That was the only time the Fever led tonight. The Liberty were able to find a bunch of success getting to the rim early and often

The Liberty won the points in the paint battle 40 to 36. However, that doesn’t tell the full story as New York’s interior presence was able to open things up for them from three point range

New York had 30 assists (and only 13 turnovers) to their 37 made field goals on the night. The Liberty will be the first to tell you that when the ball is moving from side-to-side and they’re not settling for isolation attempts, they’re at their very best.

But ultimately, the story of this game was Breanna Stewart. Stewie did a bit of everything on both sides of the ball as she led the team in scoring and assists on the night. Stewart’s 24 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists, and four blocks is a feat that had only been accomplished by Candace Parker (Candace is good for those rare historical feats!) in league history. Stewart combined with Nyara Sabally and Isabelle Harrison to hold Fever star Aliyah Boston to 1-8 shooting from the field and just seven points.

On the other end, Stewart made a living on the inside as the majority of her makes came in the painted area.

“We try to play to the percentages a lot,” Stewart said in postgame. “I think we try to play to the percentages a lot, like [restricted area] attempts and threes. It seemed like, especially in the first half, anything where I came off of the stagger, it was confusion between guards and post, and I was able to kind of just get downhill. So just taking what the defense gives me, you know? If it’s going to be like tonight, I’m going to try and get to the basket every single time because it’s so open.”

Stewart’s three point shooting has been a source of concern for much of the season as it’s at a career low 21 percent. However, she’s shooting 51.6 percent on two pointers, her highest mark since her first MVP season with the Seattle Storm back in 2018. The sign of a superstar is you’re able to control the game even when you’re struggling in one particular area.

Final score: New York Liberty 98, Indiana Fever 77.

At 15-6, the Liberty are second in the standings behind the Lynx. There’s still plenty of room for improvement for the defending WNBA champions as they try to make it back to the top of the WNBA mountain.

Caitlin Clark misses the game due to a groin injury

Photo by Chris Marion/NBAE via Getty Images

Late in Tuesday’s game against Connecticut Sun, Caitlin Clark was seen grimacing and holding her groin. It’s been an especially rough sophomore season for the Fever superstar and you could see the toll it’s all taking on the young superstar

“Obviously I’m not gonna speak for Caitlin,” Stephanie White said in pregame, “but again, with someone who’s continued to have setbacks from an injury standpoint… And as a former athlete who’s had a lot of surgeries myself, it’s very frustrating. You feel like you’re trying to do everything you can to put yourself in position to get past it or to move forward. And when there’s a setback, it’s mentally and emotionally tough. And so of course she was upset. I think anyone in that position would be. You see it all throughout the course of history with athletes when they go through injuries and especially multiple injuries back-to-back, just when you think you’re starting to move the needle. So I think the most important thing for us is to keep her upbeat, to continue to support her and let her know that we have her back and that we’re going to go out and battle for her.”

White also mentioned that Clark’s team will make the determination as to if she can participate in this weekend’s All-Star festivities. As perhaps the most bankable star in American professional sports, a lot rides on Clark’s shoulders. She specifically held out on taking part in NBA All-Star Weekend festivities so she could participate in the W’s, especially in her city. We’ll see how long she’s out for this time.

The Magic Hour

Marine Johannès always provides a jolt of energy when she steps on the court. Her combination of flair, marksmanship, and audaciousness keeps opponents on their toes and Barclays Center on its feet

Even amidst the showstopping threes, her passing is what keeps the Liberty offense humming and a bet to get a quality shot attempt on almost every possession. Throughout the season, we’ve seen the budding pick and roll chemistry between herself and new Liberty big, Isabelle Harrison.

“I think we always constantly make eye contact with each other, Harrison said in postgame, “and when she’s out there on the court, it’s someone that I make sure i screen for.” “Her and [Sabrina Ionescu], i just always make sure I’m head hunting for them, and I want to get Marine involved as much as I can because that’s my job as a screener and she constantly rewards me by looking for me on the roll.

So yeah, playing with a player like Marine you never know what to expect, and she definitely keeps you on your toes. So I’m really happy that I’ve been able to have this experience with a player like her.”

Attendance keeps rising

It was another sell-out at Barclays Center, with 17,371 on hand. It was the second straight sell-out following Sunday’s 17,265. The Liberty is averaging 16,103, third in the league behind the Golden State Valkyrie and Indiana Fever. And that’s with Brooklyn Sports and Entertainment’s arena renovations underway, closing off big sections of Barclays Center.

As we’ve noted before, the Liberty season average, should it stay at current levels (or go higher), will wind up better than any Brooklyn Nets team between 2016 and 2019.

Next up

Photo by Brian Spurlock/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

The Liberty are off for a few days as we are officially at the All-Star break! It’ll be a busy weekend for the Liberty as Sandy Brondello and the coaching staff along with Natasha Cloud, Sabrina Ionescu, and Breanna Stewart will take part in various activities in Indianapolis. The Skills Competition kicks things off on Friday at 8:00 p.m. ET on ESPN.

• Boxscore: New York Liberty 98, New York Liberty 77 – NBA
• Game Highlights: New York Liberty 98, New York Liberty 77 (Video) – NBA