LOS ANGELES — Breanna Stewart poured in 29 points and Sabrina Ionescu added 27 as the New York Liberty held off the Los Angeles Sparks 113-109 on Tuesday night, sending the Sparks to their sixth straight defeat.
Stewart shot 11 of 19 from the floor and scored 19 points in the second half after New York (16-12) trailed 56-53 at the break. The reigning WNBA Finals MVP stuffed the stat sheet with seven assists, four rebounds and four steals in a vintage two-way performance.
Ionescu connected on 9 of 16 attempts, drilling five three-pointers, and poured in 14 first-quarter points to stake the Liberty to a 36-30 lead after the opening period. Her early scoring surge set the tone for a New York offence that shot 49 percent from the field.
Reserve Rebekah Gardner finished with 15 points for New York, while fellow bench contributors Han Xu and Marine Fauthoux each scored 13. Fauthoux knocked down back-to-back triples to stretch the lead to 93-86, and the Liberty maintained a two-possession cushion for virtually the entire final eight minutes.
Rae Burrell led Los Angeles (10-17) with 24 points, and Nneka Ogwumike added 21 points and nine assists after posting four consecutive double-doubles. Burrell buried a three-pointer to put the Sparks up 81-74, but Stewart answered with a floater to close an 11-4 run that gave New York a one-point lead heading into the fourth quarter.
The Liberty, sitting fourth in the WNBA standings, look to build momentum when they visit the defending champion Las Vegas Aces on Thursday. The Sparks, languishing in 10th place, travel to Portland to face the Fire on Sunday.
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