Liberty-Dream Preview

By BRETT HUSTON
Posted Jun 29 2011 2:06PM

The New York Liberty have struggled to find any sort of consistency through eight games, though it appears Cappie Pondexter has after four straight 20-point performances.

Facing the Atlanta Dream should help Pondexter and her teammates recall their worst performance of the first month.

Pondexter scored a season-low seven points and the Liberty were routed by 21 earlier this month by the Dream, a defeat they'll look to avenge as they seek a third straight victory Thursday night in Atlanta.

New York (4-4) began its season with a pair of wins, the first a 94-88 victory at Philips Arena as Plenette Pierson scored 25 points.

The Liberty, though, went on to lose four straight, including a 79-58 home loss to Atlanta (2-7) on June 14. Angel McCoughtry, who missed the teams' first meeting with a sprained left knee, led the way with 18 points for the Dream while Pondexter missed nine of her 12 shots.

Pondexter has bounced back, and in her last two games, she's helped her team do the same. The four-time All-Star had 23 points and 10 assists in a 94-82 win at Tulsa last Thursday, and finished with 22 points, seven rebounds and five assists in a 77-67 victory over visiting Los Angeles on Sunday.

Pondexter was named Eastern Conference player of the week Monday, receiving the award for the 11th time - fourth most in WNBA history.

New York's win over the Sparks was its first in three tries at Newark's Prudential Center, its home the next three summers while Madison Square Garden undergoes renovations.

"Our players have to get a comfort here. ... We need to establish we can win here," coach John Whisenant said. "We need to win at home and make people afraid to come into Prudential to play the Liberty.''

As New York knows, the Dream certainly haven't made Philips Arena an intimidating venue for visitors. Atlanta fell to 1-5 on its home court - 1-3 during its five-game homestand - with a 92-86 loss to San Antonio on Sunday.

That defeat may have stung the most. The Dream led 78-71 after Coco Miller's free throw with 5:02 to go, but fell apart from there - though coach Marynell Meadors didn't seem particularly upset.

"I thought our effort was absolutely perfect,'' Meadors said. "In the last two minutes, we had a chance to win the game, but we just didn't."

Meadors may be happy with her team's effort, but she can't be too pleased with its lack of accuracy. Atlanta is shooting 39.8 percent from the field, 25.2 percent from 3-point range and 67.7 percent from the free-throw line - all league lows.

The Liberty (17.8) and the Dream (17.3) rank first and second in forced turnovers.

DeSouza's double-double leads Dream past Liberty

By GEORGE HENRY
Posted Jun 30 2011 10:25PM

ATLANTA (AP) Erika DeSouza tied a career high with 27 points and grabbed 15 rebounds, Lindsey Harding scored 25 points and the Atlanta Dream rallied for an 87-81 victory over the New York Liberty on Thursday night.

DeSouza's size and agility caused matchup problems for the Liberty, who were outscored 46-22 in the paint. She shot 11 for 16 from the field as the Dream (3-7) snapped a two-game skid.

Cappie Pondexter scored 24 points for New York (4-5), which couldn't hold a 10-point after Plenette Pierson hit an 18-footer with 3:40 left in the third quarter.

Atlanta went on a 14-3 run that ended with Armintie Price's runner in the final minute of the period for a 62-61 lead - the Dream's first since the game's early seconds.

DeSouza's two free throws with 5:11 left put Atlanta ahead 73-72 and it never trailed again. She hit a 17-footer from the right baseline for an 83-78 lead as the shot clock was expiring with 45.7 seconds remaining.

Essence Carson scored 12 points and Kia Vaughn 11 for the Liberty, who had won two straight.

New York took its first 10-point lead midway through the first quarter on Carson's 3-pointer. Breland's jumper with 6:22 to go in the second extended the lead to 34-21, the Liberty's biggest advantage of the game.

Nicole Powell opened the third quarter with a pair of 3s that caused Dream coach Marynell Meadors to call timeout with Atlanta trailing 50-39.

Lindsey Harding's layup helped the Dream cut the lead to five midway through the third, but Pondexter followed with a jumper and Vaughn a pair of layups to make it 56-45.

Pierson left the game briefly with a left ankle injury early in the second. She was being defended by Sandora Irvin from behind when Harding collided with her in front. Pierson returned at the midpoint of the period and finished with eight points and seven rebounds in 27 minutes.

DeSouza also scored 27 points on Sept. 4, 2009, at Sacramento.

• Liberty: --
• Dream: --

• Liberty: Whisenant
• Dream: --

• Lead Changes: 4
• Times Tied: 5

• Arena: Philips Arena, Atlanta, GA
• Officials: #13 Cameron Inouye, #31 Amy Bonner, #21 Byron Jarrett
• Attendance: 4423
• Duration: 2:8