Ever since being drafted as the first overall pick in 2020, Sabrina Ionescu has been a vital component of the New York Liberty’s impressive roster. She has firmly molded herself into one of the premier guards in the women’s league, thanks to the endless hours she pours into practice, which helps her command the floor. However, her deadly accuracy from beyond the arc seemed to have missed the mark in helping her team in today’s game against the Los Angeles Sparks.

On August 28th, the New York Liberty took the court to face the Los Angeles Sparks. After securing wins in the previous two matches against them, the Liberty were highly expected to add another win to their collection. Even the team’s standout, Ionescu, was in top form after returning from a neck injury. While contributing to the team’s total, she surpassed Vickie Johnson’s record for the second-most assists in Liberty history with her impressive 788th career dime by the end of the second quarter.

Ionescu’s feat came as she issued a nifty bounce pass to a cutting Kennedy Burke. It marks a significant achievement. But if she continues at her current pace, she will soon eclipse the all-time Liberty record held by legendary guard Teresa Weatherspoon, who had 1,306 assists. Ionescu finished the evening with 6 total assists. But despite the record, Ionescu and the team fell short in surviving against the Sparks’ tough competition.

In fact, the team returned with a 94-88 upset loss. The New York Liberty roster started slow right from the beginning, scoring only 14 points in the first quarter. The Sparks, on the other hand, took advantage and scored 26 points for a 12-point lead.

When the Liberty woke up, it was already too late

By halftime, the Liberty scored 5 more points than the Sparks did, trimming the lead to seven points. In the following quarter, the Liberty once again tried to cut the lead, and they did—bringing the Sparks’ lead down to just 3 points. But in the last quarter, the Sparks did not slip.

They scored 27 points while limiting the Liberty to 25 points. Thus, the Sparks emerged victorious against the Liberty for the first time in the last three attempts, thanks to their incredible roster that stood firm to ensure the Liberty couldn’t fully erase the lead. The leading scorers for the Sparks were Dearica Hamby with 21 points and Rickea Jackson with 19 points. 5 of their players tonight finished with 10 points or above.

For Liberty on the other hand, the points remained concentrated among three of their players. While Breanna Stewart led the team with 32 points, Ionescu followed up with 18, and Nyara Sabally stood third with 14 points.

Qualified for the playoffs, the team stands 26-6 atop the table. They face no.4 Storm for their next two games.

Stay tuned for more such updates and join us for the exciting second episode of the “Dual Threat Show” as our host BG12 sits down with Georgia Bulldogs star and Mountain West All-Freshman Team Selection, Asia Avinger.