A flicker of seafoam-colored lights washed over the Barclays Arena crowd Saturday afternoon as the Liberty gathered near their bench well before tipoff.

The final coronation of the 2024 WNBA champions was set to begin.

Team owner Clara Wu Tsai already was wearing a diamond-studded championship ring the size of a silver dollar when she took the microphone at center court.

When she and her husband, Joe, bought the Liberty in 2019, she envisioned living a moment like this.

“This was our first championship,” Tsai told the crowd, “but it will not be our last.”

Saturday was the first step toward doing just that.

The Las Vegas Aces, who heard the crowd’s joyous screams during the ring ceremony from a nearby visitors locker room, were looking to play spoiler to New York’s celebratory day.

Instead, 24 hours after the Knicks clinched their first Eastern Conference finals berth in 25 years, the Liberty sent a resounding message that New York basketball is back with a 92-78 win.

At practice Friday, Natasha Cloud said it’s important to use the first game to put the rest of the league on notice.

That’s exactly what the Liberty did as they frustrated the Aces.

Saturday’s season opener was a dogfight. The Liberty held a comfortable 14-point lead at halftime, then saw it dissolve to two by the fourth quarter.

But every time the Aces battled their way back into the game, the Liberty found a way to respond.

There was a Cloud feed to Jonquel Jones for a layup late in the third quarter.

Then, there was Cloud running the length of the floor after tumbling out of bounds with Jewell Loyd, only to finish with a layup through contact to make it a three-point play in the fourth quarter.

The Aces’ last bit of hope was swatted away when Jones blocked A’ja Wilson late in the fourth. The Liberty always seemed to have an answer.

Breanna Stewart led the Liberty with 25 points, eight rebounds and three assists. Cloud, in her Liberty debut, had 22 points, nine assists and six rebounds. And Jones added 17 points, 10 rebounds and six assists.

The Liberty have spent training camp installing a revamped offense to help with floor spacing.

On Saturday, the Aces offered little resistance as the defending champs took advantage of open lanes and drove to the basket. As a result, New York outscored Las Vegas 56-32 in the paint.

“There’s some imperfect situations, but that’s the part of Game 1 learnings that we have. We’re building that chemistry,” coach Sandy Brondello said. “But that’s a tough opponent. We know that we have a great rivalry, have great respect for them. But to come out and play the defense that we did, we had some breakdowns … but overall, we played a really good game, and it’s something that we’ll continue to build on over these next weeks.”

The win was the ideal ending to a memorable day.

Not only did the defending champions gawk at their blingy rings Saturday, but they also got to watch in awe as their massive championship banner slowly rose to the Barclays Center rafters before the game.

“It just creates a standard for anybody that comes into Barclays,” Stewart said. “That’s what you’re going to see every time you come in here is, like, our why and why we’re doing things and why we’re continuing to be better for this season.”

Cloud may not have been part of last year’s title run, but she understood when she was traded to the Liberty this offseason that championships are the standard.

One game down, but 43 more to go before the playoffs.

While there’s plenty of potential for this team once again to do something special, the Liberty have a plethora of things to work on.

“I’m excited about this team that we have here,” Brondello said. “Yes, our goal is to win another championship, but it’s a long way to go. It’s more about playing the right way. … It’s gonna be hard, but let’s embrace the hard.”