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Jonquel Jones is the engine block of the Liberty; the heart of the operation; the commander in chief of the paint. 

Without her, the Liberty are reeling. 

Sunday’s 79-70 loss to the Storm at Barclays Center was the latest example of that. 

The Liberty were outscored 44-28 in the paint. Without Jones, they have put even more of an emphasis on moving the ball. But the Liberty recorded as many turnovers (17) as they did assists against the Storm. 

A disastrous third quarter, during which the Liberty scored a measly six points on 18 shots and two free throws, was the nail in the coffin for New York. 

“They came out and executed, and we didn’t,” Liberty coach Sandy Brondello said after the sixth loss in nine games. “We didn’t have enough fight there, and to score six points, it’s not what we’re about.” 

Give Seattle credit. The Storm, who were down three at halftime, made adjustments during the break and their defense put the clamps on Sabrina Ionescu, who scored 20 of her 22 points in the first half. 

Seattle’s switching also frustrated the Liberty, and the Storm did a better job preventing them from getting out in transition. 

The Liberty didn’t do themselves any favors by missing several easy baskets at the rim and committing careless turnovers. 

It also didn’t help that Breanna Stewart, who started at center in place of Jones, had an off day as she finished with eight points on 17 shots, along with six rebounds, three assists and three blocks. 

“I think I just sucked today, and I can say that, I have no problem with that,” Stewart said. “But I gotta just get my head on the rim. Finishing some shots and not getting to the free-throw line at all is kind of tough.” 

The Liberty also lost Isabelle Harrison (apparent right knee) and Natasha Cloud (hip) during the third quarter. 

The severity of the injuries wasn’t immediately clear postgame. Harrison was undergoing “imaging,” Brondello said. Cloud declined to comment on Harrison and her injuries. 

The Liberty, now 12-6, continue to say they’re not shook by the recent bout of adversity. 

Ionescu said team morale is “great,” and the Liberty — thanks to a franchise-best 9-0 start — are still among the top three teams in the league standings. 

That doesn’t make losing Sunday’s game any easier to digest. 

“We got to find ways to get wins,” said Ionescu, who also led the team Sunday in rebounds (nine) and assists (six). “It’s not about pointing fingers. People are out or in lineups we haven’t seen, defense we haven’t seen. It’s just understanding we [have] got to find a way to get a win.” 

The Liberty aren’t expecting to get Jones back before the All-Star break. They have three more games — all at home — before then. 

The Aces visit on Tuesday, followed by the Dream on Sunday and Fever on July 16. 

The Liberty know they have to keep chugging along. 

“There’s great teams in this league,” Ionescu said. “ It’s not just going to be easy when you’re down that many starters to just show up and we win because we’re the New York Liberty. You’re going to have to find a way to win and dig really deep. And it’s been tough. We haven’t been able to really catch a break I feel like. And we’d rather see this adversity early on in the year and be able to hit the ground running when it really matters most. But we’re going to be just fine.”