Sky-Liberty Preview

By ALAN FERGUSON
Posted Aug 03 2011 1:31PM

The New York Liberty have alternated losses and wins over their last six games, but they've been more consistent against their next opponent.

The Liberty seek their seventh win in eight matchups against the Chicago Sky and fifth in a row at home Thursday.

New York (11-8) is solidly in third place in the Eastern Conference with a 2 1/2-game lead over Chicago, but its split of the last six games has made climbing up the standings difficult. The Liberty helped themselves Tuesday by making 11 of 19 shots from 3-point range in an 85-75 victory at Atlanta.

Leilani Mitchell hit two of her four fourth-quarter 3-pointers in the final 2:37 to help keep the Dream at bay. Plenette Pierson led the way with 20 points, reaching that plateau for the second time this season.

"I just know we need to continue to win to make the playoffs," guard Cappie Pondexter said. "If we do continue to win, we will continue to move up that East ladder."

New York might have a chance at another win if Chicago native Pondexter can repeat some of her recent performances against the Sky (9-11). The All-Star guard scored 18 points, hit the tying 3-pointer with 1:15 remaining and made four free throws in the final 21 seconds during an 80-73 victory at the Prudential Center on July 10.

Essence Carson, who hit the go-ahead 3-pointer in that win, scored 18 points off the bench while helping her team rally from a 17-point deficit.

Pondexter, scoring a team-best 17.1 points per game, averaged 24.8 on 62.7 percent shooting as the Liberty swept last season's series. She scored 20 in New York's trip to Chicago on June 17 but missed 12 of 16 shots during an 85-73 defeat.

The Sky's Sylvia Fowles had 27 points and 11 rebounds in that game but hasn't scored more than 16 points in the past three games, her longest such stretch this season. The All-Star center and her teammates couldn't overcome a slow start in an 88-84 loss to Los Angeles on Saturday.

Fowles, averaging 19.8 points, was held to six in the first 23 minutes as Chicago fell behind by 20. She finished with 16 and Epiphanny Prince had 12 of her 16 in the second half as the Sky rallied within 84-82 with 20.2 seconds left.

"We are not good enough to play 20-minute games. We are not good enough to have a large lead or (need) comebacks," coach Pokey Chatman said. "We don't have the depth. We don't have the experience, and we're not that team."

Chatman's team has lost three of four and claimed that lone win against league-worst Tulsa last Thursday. That victory was also among the Sky's two on the road this season, with the other against Washington - last in the East.

Pondexter, Powell lead Liberty past Sky 59-49

By VIN A. CHERWOO
Posted Aug 04 2011 4:30PM

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) New York kept it close for three quarters, catching up every time Chicago started to pull away. Then the Liberty shut down the Sky with a record-setting defensive effort in the fourth quarter.

Cappie Pondexter scored 15 points to lead the Liberty past Chicago 59-49 Thursday, holding the Sky to a WNBA-record one point in the fourth.

``We just figured we can limit our turnovers, get some movement offensively and get more pressure defensively,'' Pondexter said. ``We definitely did that in the second half. We got stops and we were able to get easy buckets in transition. They got a little frustrated on the offensive end and they didn't give energy defensively.''

Nicole Powell added seven of her 13 points in the fourth quarter as the Liberty outscored Chicago 16-1 in the final period. Essence Carson added 11 points and Powell also had 10 rebounds for New York (12-8), which set the league record for fewest points allowed in a quarter and won for the eighth time in 11 games.

``I think our players got more invigorated, excited as we saw them wearing down,'' Liberty coach John Whisenant said. ``We finally wrestled the lead from them, we never had it until then and that probably empowered us somewhat and it probably discouraged them. That's what our defense is meant to do.''

Sylvia Fowles scored 11 points to lead Chicago (9-12), which missed all 10 shots from the field and had nine turnovers in the fourth. The Sky, losers of four of their last five, finished 18 for 53 (34 percent) on field goals and had 22 turnovers.

``We just weren't doing what we needed to do,'' Fowles said. ``The defensive pressure picked up in the fourth quarter and we just couldn't handle it. ... We didn't get what we normally get like in the first three quarters, and that's what happens when you don't progress in the fourth quarter.''

Trailing since the opening minutes of the game, New York opened the fourth quarter with a 14-0 run. Leilani Mitchell hit a 3-pointer and Alex Montgomery made a layup to tie the score at 48 with 7:47 to go in the fourth quarter. It was the first tie since 2-2.

Powell had a 3 with 5:16 left to give the Liberty their first lead of the game. The Sky had a turnover on the ensuing inbounds play and Powell's layup extended New York's advantage to 53-48.

Epiphanny Prince made 1 of 2 free throws with 2:23 remaining for Chicago's only point of the fourth quarter, pulling to 57-49. The Sky had missed seven field goals and had seven turnovers in the period to that point.

``I don't know if we played that well defensively in any single game this season,'' Pondexter said ``To see that just shows you how we're staying with our game plan, how hard we're working, and how much we're believing in Coach Whis' defense.''

The Liberty were held under 60 points for the third time this season, and they lost the previous two - 79-58 against Atlanta on June 14 and 68-59 against Connecticut on July 15.

``I think they're one of the hottest teams in the league right now,'' Chicago coach Pokey Chatman said of the Liberty. ``They scored 59 points at home, and we're a bad road team, you're supposed to win. ... (Holding them to) 59 points is enough to win on the road.''

After Pondexter's 3 pulled the Liberty to 28-26 in the opening minute of the third quarter, the Sky used a 10-2 run to pull away and take a double-digit lead. Snow had two jumpers during the spurt, and Dominique Canty's layup with 4 1/2 minutes left in the period extended the Sky's lead to 38-28.

New York chipped away with a 13-4 run as six different players scored, with Plenette Pierson's jumper cutting the deficit to 42-41 with 1:14 to go in the third. Shay Murphy had a layup and four free throws in the final minute of the quarter to give the Sky a 48-43 lead heading to the fourth.

The Sky led 26-23 at halftime. Pondexter's potential tying 3-point heave from near midcourt was ruled after buzzer, and the call was upheld on video review.

The Liberty got off to a slow start, missing 14 of their first 18 shots. The Sky took advantage, using a 17-6 run to take a 22-10 lead on Lindsay Wisdom-Hylton's second basket of the second quarter with 7:34 remaining in the period.

New York recovered to make five of their next 11 shots in a 10-0 run to pull within two with about 2 1/2 minutes left in the first half. Fowles' layup with 2:22 to go ended Chicago's scoring drought of more than 5 minutes.

• Sky: --
• Liberty: --

• Sky: --
• Liberty: --

• Lead Changes: 1
• Times Tied: 2

• Arena: Prudential Center, Newark, NJ
• Officials: #38 Lamont Simpson, #9 Denise Brooks, #34 Maj Forsberg
• Attendance: 10133
• Duration: 1:51