Sun ousted as dream Finals set
NY wins three straight to line up with Vegas
UNCASVILLE, Conn. — Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones have New York back in the WNBA Finals for the first time in more than two decades.
Two of the Liberty’s big offseason acquisitions came up big to help them reach the championship round for the first time since 2002 with an 87-84 win over Connecticut on Sunday in Game 4 of the semifinals.
Jones scored 25 points, including 5 in the final minutes. The 6-foot-6-inch forward, who won an MVP in 2021 with the Sun, added 15 rebounds and four blocked shots for the Liberty, who will face defending champion Las Vegas in a series that starts on Oct. 8. The two Finals teams were labeled as “super teams” coming into the season.
Stewart, who came over from Seattle in the offseason and earned her second regular season MVP award, led New York with 27 points and Betnijah Laney added 21 in the clincher of the best-of-five series. The Liberty won three in a row from the Sun after dropping the series opener in New York.
MVP runner-up Alyssa Thomas had 17 points, 15 rebounds, and 11 assists for Connecticut. It was her first triple-double of the postseason after recording a record six during the regular season. Tiffany Hayes had 15 points and DiJonai Carrington added 14 for the Sun, who were trying to make it back to the Finals for a second consecutive season.
A Stewart 3-pointer with two minutes left gave the Liberty a 77-75 lead. The New York fans chanted “MVP” as she sank two foul shots on her next trip down the court.
DeWanna Bonner (12 points) brought the Sun to within a point with a long 3-pointer, but they lost a challenge when Hayes was called for a foul with 56 seconds left. Jones sank two free throws to make it 81-78, then made two more foul shots after stealing a Hayes pass and put the Liberty up 5.
A 3-pointer from Tyasha Harris made it an 85-84 game with 7.6 seconds left. But Stewart sank two foul shots on the other end to seal the win as Connecticut couldn’t get a final shot off.
New York won the game at the foul line, where they were 21 of 25. The Sun made three free throws on just eight attempts.
Sun coach Stephanie White called Thomas the most underrated superstar in the league and bemoaned that she was only able to take four free throws in a very physical game.
“I had a season that you’ve never seen in this league and probably won’t see again unless I do it,” Thomas said. “Let’s be reasonable. Triple doubles, the most double-doubles in league history. We’re talking about league records. So for me, I have a lot to be proud of.”
New York split the four regular season meetings against the defending champion Aces, who advanced to the finals for the third time in four years, sweeping Dallas in the semifinals.