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tRY IT NOWUNCASVILLE, Conn. — Sabrina Ionescu isn’t brash. She’s not going to fall for this reporter’s line of questioning about whether she personally, as one of the league’s best players, took the onus to take over Sunday’s game to ensure the Liberty would end a four-game losing streak.
Ionescu said her hot hand and aggressive play was her “setting the tone” before she went down the list of her teammates, including Jonquel Jones and Emma Meesseman, who made her Liberty debut, and credited them with aiding in the Liberty’s 87-78 win over the lowly Sun.
But Ionescu doesn’t need to say what everyone witnessed Sunday at Mohegan Sun Arena.
From the jump, Ionescu went nuclear and made it clear the Liberty’s longest losing streak since 2022 would end this game.
She scored 16 of her season-high 36 points in the first quarter to help lift the Liberty to a much-needed win and out of this godforsaken funk.
Sabrina Ionescu reacts during the Liberty’s win against the Sun on Aug. 3. Imagn Images“She was just really consistent,” said Jones, who added 21 points and nine rebounds. “We look to her in moments when we couldn’t really get the ball in the rim and when things kind of felt stuck and stagnant. She was able to help push us and get us over that hump.”
The MVP cheers — presumably led by the more than 200 Liberty season ticket holders the team bused up for the game — started to break out for Ionescu when she stepped to the free-throw line late in the third quarter. The chants grew louder each time after.
Ionescu shot 14-for-22 from the field, knocking in one of her three 3-point attempts. She finished one point shy of matching her career mark and registered her first double-double of the season by adding 11 rebounds to her standout showing.
Ionescu also registered her 1,000th career assist in the second quarter, when she fed a cutting Rebekah Gardner for a layup, becoming the third-fastest WNBA player to reach the milestone, accomplishing the feat in 170 games.
Emma Meesseman attempts a shot during the Liberty’s win against the Sun on Aug. 3. NBAE via Getty Images
Sabrina Ionescu attempts a shot during the Liberty’s Aug. 3 win. Imagn ImagesBut Sunday was just another strong performance by Ionescu in a series of them as she’s tried to keep her team above water despite it drowning in adversity.
Since the All-Star break, Ionescu is averaging 25.6 points, 6.4 rebounds and 5.9 assists while shooting 50.4 percent from the field.
As for Sunday, Ionescu said she was “just trying to play at my own pace and attack and find ways to get my teammates open.
“Obviously, [Sunday’s win] was a team effort,” she said.
New York, which is riddled with injuries, got a lift from Meesseman.
Jonquel Jones defends during the Liberty’s Aug. 3 win. NBAE via Getty ImagesThe Belgian star spent most of the first half settling in and scored all 11 of her points in the second half. She also contributed two rebounds and three assists in her first WNBA game since 2022.
Sunday was a far better showing for the Liberty than the monstrosity that unfolded Friday.
New York committed a season-high 23 turnovers and was overwhelmed by the pesky Sun’s physicality as five-win Connecticut bested the defending champ by 16 points.
“We understood that we were in a slump,” Jones said. “And anytime you get to come out and play, you get another opportunity to go out there and try to get a win. But [Ionescu and I are] leaders on the team and people look to us to kind of set the tone and lead by example. And we understand that. We really did take personally this game.”
The travel-weary Liberty (18-10) will cap off this brutal stretch of the schedule, playing six games in 10 days, Tuesday against the Wings.






