The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Stewart’s 32 points overpower Liberty
NEW YORK — Breanna Stewart and the Seattle Storm weren’t concerned when the New York Liberty made a run to take a lead early in the fourth quarter.
They knew it was only a matter of time before they went on their own burst to put the game away.
The Storm scored 15 straight points to turn a two-point deficit into a 13-point lead and never looked back in a 96-80 victory over the Liberty on Monday at a camp day game at Madison Square Garden.
“It was a grind-out game for us until that point,” said Stewart, who scored 32 points. “We felt like that run was coming, it wasn’t if it was coming, it was when.”
Stewart’s 3-point play started the game-changing run.
Natasha Howard added 14 points, 10 rebounds, five blocks and five steals for the Storm (22-7). She did a little bit of everything for Seattle during the spurt: a block, steal, basket and rebound. She also kept a few plays alive on both ends of the floor with her hustle.
“She’s so active. The stat line — that’s a crazy stat line,” Stewart said. “She’s in a good place. She knows what we expect from her.”
By the time Sugar Rodgers scored with just over 2 minutes left the game, it was out of reach for New York, which has dropped seven straight and 15 of its last 18 games.
“The effort was definitely there. Everyone was playing hard,” said Tina Charles, who scored 20 points. “We ran up against a really great team.”
Kia Nurse also scored 20 points and Amanda Zahui B had 17 points and 11 rebounds for the Liberty (7-21). It’s New York’s longest losing skid since dropping the final seven games of the 2013 season.