In the middle of the first quarter on Sunday afternoon, Jonquel Jones’ gamble for a steal did not pay off, which left A’ja Wilson with the ball at the top of the key and a chance to play 5-on-4. In the first two games of the 2023 WNBA Finals, that would have been a certain bucket. Not in Game 3.
Betnijah Laney rotated over to shut off Wilson’s drive, then shut off Jackie Young’s drive as well after Wilson kicked it out. A few moments later, the ball was in Kelsey Plum’s hands, and as she drove to the basket, Jones, who had gotten back into the play, arrived to force a miss. Down on the other end, Jones was rewarded with a wide open layup in transition that put the New York Liberty ahead.
Save for a brief 13 second period later on where the game was tied, the Liberty would lead the rest of the way en route to a season-saving 87-73 win over the Las Vegas Aces.
“We had a fight,” Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello said. “We got back to our identity. We’re a way better team than what we’ve showed the last two games. I’m just proud of the effort and the commitment and the connection that we had, but now we’ve got to do it again.”
During the regular season, the Liberty posted a 109.6 offensive…
