Howard, Ionescu lead Libs over Mystic

This was the moment the Liberty needed Natasha Howard and Sabrina Ionescu for.

The Liberty’s playoff hopes hung by the thinnest of threads. It needed to beat the Washington Mystics to try to make its first playoff berth in four seasons. They went on to beat the Mystics, 9180, on Friday and it was Howard and Ionescu — who had their best overall complete games wearing Liberty uniforms — who made sure of it.

Howard set the tone from the onset, controlling the opening tip and scoring the first points of the game. And Ionescu sealed it in the final 18 seconds with the deciding jump shot and the final points of the game.

Howard has struggled to get back to her true form most of the season. Then on Friday, her twoway abilities went unmatched. She got the first points of the game by faking out Charles in the first quarter and getting her to foul while she drained a mid-range two-point shot for the Libs.

She played heavy coverage on Charles and was a big reason the top shooter in the league was held to 10 points. (Charles scored 30-plus points on the Libs in their last two meetings this season). Howard looked like the player that wanted this win the absolute most on Friday, and was responsible for 24 points, 10 rebounds and three steals.

“I’m really, really proud of the way that [the team’s leaders] stepped up and particularly Natasha,” Liberty head coach Walt Hopkins said after the game.

And Ionescu has easily been the team’s weakest defender. Yet, in the first half, she was trying to box out Tina Charles, diving for loose balls, and at one point sliding on her knees to recover one just inches from the boundary. And she was shooting with an accuracy she hasn’t flexed most of the season.

When the Mystics started encroaching on their biggest lead of 24 points in the second half, there was Ionescu, dropping another trey or a long two. In fact, when the Mystics cut their lead to five points in the fourth quarter, Ionescu charged down the court and pulled up for a jump shot to keep the distance on the scoreboard.

“Sabrina really controlled the game for us offensively and got us where we wanted to get late in fourth quarter,” Hopkins said of Ionescu, who finished with 22 points, nine assists, five rebounds and a steal.

The Liberty is now in the waiting game. Its record stands at 12-20, with the Mystics and Los Angeles Sparks both at 12-19.

The Mystics and the Sparks have their season finales on Sunday. If either of them win, the Liberty can at least bid adieu to this season knowing they left it all on the court this last game.