It’s a little early in the season for a playoff-quality game. But on Saturday, the New York Liberty and Indiana Fever delivered, with the Liberty getting the 90-88 win in a last-second thriller.
The momentum changed constantly throughout the game, with both teams leading by double digits at different points in the matchup. But a big 12-point fourth quarter from Jonquel Jones drove New York to the win, with a pair of free throws from Sabrina Ionescu and a last-second steal from Natasha Cloud sealing the victory.
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The two teams traded leads early on, keeping things tight from the jump. The Liberty went down a starter in the second quarter, with Leonie Fiebich heading to the bench in after a collision with Lexie Hull. But in the minutes after Fiebich left, New York started to find a groove, pulling to a double-digit lead and going up by as many as 15 points.
But the Fever crept within reach of the Liberty throughout the second half, going on a run of their own and retaking a lead in the third quarter. Indiana went up by as many as 12 points in that quarter.
Saturday marked another tough three-point shooting day for Fever star Caitlin Clark: After go 0-5 from three in the Fever’s win over the Atlanta Dream on Thursday, Clark once again struggled from beyond the arc. She went 0-7 on Saturday before finally sinking a contested three late in the third quarter.
It was an eventful final minute for Clark in that third quarter: Seconds later, Clark got the other end, getting hit with a nasty block from Breanna Stewart and crashing into hoop.
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But then, Clark bounced right back, getting a long buzzer-beating three to put Indiana up 76-68 heading into the final frame.
But despite the Fever leading by as many as 12 in the third quarter, New York didn’t let that lead last long. The Liberty’s team effort pulled them back into the game, with a Jone three-pointer getting the team back within one point of the Fever. Another massive three from Jones gave New York the lead — and silenced the Indiana home crowd.
In the final minutes, it came down to the line — the free throw line, that is. Successful free throws from Jones and Aliyah Boston tied things up at 88-all. Ionescu had a chance to take the lead twice, but her three-pointers rolled out of the basket on both attempts.
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Indiana had several chances to pull ahead in the final seconds, but fell short each time — with a missed three-pointer from Clark, with Cloud getting a block on DeWanna Bonner, with a Kelsey Mitchell layup that came after the buzzer.
Ionescu was fouled by Lexie Hull with 7.6 seconds, and sank both free throws to take the 90-88 lead. And in the end, it came down to Cloud, who just needed a tap to get the ball out of Clark’s hands and seal the victory.
