Rickea Jackson Shines as Sparks Edge Liberty in Nail-Biter

Opening Fireworks

Sometimes the first possessions set the tone of the game. Dearica Hamby opened up the scoring with a three pointer, a shot she doesn’t attempt many of, but sank as the shot clock nearly expired. With an immediate clap back, Jonquel Jones hits one on the other end. This is promising if you’re rooting for the Liberty. This being JJ’s third game back after being out several weeks, she looks good. The Sparks and Liberty trade baskets for a few possessions until Breanna Stewart sinks a three. Stewie’s three point percentage has dipped nearly nine percent from last year so any time she’s hitting them, it’s a good sign.

Except, those would be Stewie’s only points, gingerly making her way to the bench during a timeout just over three minutes into the game. She would be out for the remainder of the game, though it was not clear how serious of an injury.

Sparks Seize Control Early

At Barclays, any time a visiting player misses two free throws, everyone gets free Shake Shack, which Dearica Hamby was nice enough to gift the arena. However, the rest of the 1st quarter was almost all Sparks. The Liberty seemed to have trouble defending the long ball, leaving wide open looks as well as easy lay-ups.

The Sparks stretched it to a 15 point lead. The Liberty would win the next three quarters, but the 15 point deficit again deep into the third quarter was too much to overcome.

Jackson Makes a Statement

“Rickea was killing us with her size.” — Coach Sandy Brondello

Rickea Jackson was shooting lights out all game. She created a mismatch on anyone that guarded her. She seemed to be on a mini revenge tour, laying to rest any chatter that she was washed up. She would finish the game with 24 points, while Kelsey Plum added 20 plus 8 assists, both combining 7 for 12 from beyond the arc.

Azura Stevens feasted on open looks and clear lanes with what looked at times to be like pre-game lay ups. She and Hamby both finished with 17 points and double doubles.

Sabrina Steps Up in Stewie’s Absence

This was the second game in a row for the Liberty. Some might say it seemed apparent with both Leonie Feibich and Kennedy Burke nursing ailments, stretching the depth.

Sabrina Ionescu flirted with a triple double, taking over with Stewie going down early. She dropped 30 points, 8 boards, and 6 assists. Unhappy with a timely three pointer erased due to a JJ illegal screen, we got a glimpse of crash-out Sab repeatedly asking to be T’d up for her fiery reaction. Her wish was granted.

This fed into the formidable home crowd, everyone on their feet for the final minutes of the game. Natasha Cloud, 22 points, had a huge fourth quarter, about half of her points coming in clutch time. With 23 seconds to go, Sabrina tied the game with her much improved mid range jump shot.

They warn you about letting the Liberty get momentum at home and it looked like we might be headed for overtime. After using their last foul left to give, all the Liberty had to do was play straight up defense, but Hamby gets the ball to Rickea Jackson, driving to the basket to muscle up a really difficult shot over Stephanie Talbot, sinking it just as time expired… much like the very first basket.

The Sparks stretched their winning streak to five games.

Looking Ahead: Liberty’s Road Forward

“We know what we’re capable of.” — Sabrina Ionescu

Overall for the Liberty, this is probably one of those games they’d like to have back. Both teams made it to the free throw line nearly the same amount of times. Poor officiating has been a point of contention in the league overall. But, this game seemed to potentially be about the back to back nights and fatigue.

Stewie is a player you just can’t replace. With a 7’1” wingspan, she can play and defend all positions. Izzy Harrison (very much stepping up lately) gave some quality minutes, though apparently on a minutes restriction. New-comer Stephanie Talbot may be getting used to the system, but has not made a significant offensive or defensive impact thus far and gives up the game winning shot.

We still await word on the severity of Stewie’s injury. So the Liberty Nation holds their breath.

There are still reasons to be encouraged. We are mid way through the season and have not yet truly seen the Liberty firing on all cylinders at the same time. Players are still getting new combinations of reps with one another, sometimes live. Beating Phoenix the night before, they still sit at number two, four games behind the Lynx.

The Liberty went 6–2 during their homestand and next, will embark on a four game road trip. Catch them back in action on Monday at the Dallas Wings. Wednesday we get our very first, highly anticipated finals rematch.

How will they respond without their general?