The Liberty opened their seven-game homestand with a dud.
New York, playing its first game in a week, suffered an 87-70 loss to the equally rested Golden State Valkyries.
It was almost exactly a year ago that the Liberty welcomed the Valkyries to the league by crushing the 2025 expansion franchise in back-to-back games.
But this time around, the Valkyries took the lead and never looked back.
New York trailed 25-15 after the first quarter.
Whatever was said in the Liberty’s huddle between quarters worked — at least initially.
The Liberty opened the second quarter with a 10-2 run, capped by a Rebekah Gardner 3-pointer that put New York within two.
But that would be the closest the Liberty would get.
Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase called a timeout to regroup her troops. Golden State regained control from there, taking an eight-point lead at halftime.
Part of what kept the Liberty in the game was Golden State’s cooling off after the start. The Valkyries went 5-for-10 from deep in the first quarter before shooting 2-for-10 from behind the arc in the second quarter.
Things didn’t get better in the second half. The Liberty were outscored 21-12 in the third quarter.
Chris DeMarco appeared to wave the white flag when the Liberty were down by 20 with 6:48 left in the fourth, sending Han Xu in for the first time that night.
It wasn’t the Liberty’s night.
Jonquel Jones and Breanna Stewart carried the team offensively.
Stewart had 18 points and nine rebounds. Jones scored a season-high 16 points with eight rebounds.
It seemed inevitable that the Liberty’s French duo, Pauline Astier and Marine Johannès, who had been red-hot to start the season, were due for an off night.
The Liberty collectively shot 6-for-24 from deep, while the Valkyries converted on 13 of their 35 field goal attempts from behind the arc.
Golden State — which added Gabby Williams, one of the league’s premier two-way wings, in free agency — flustered New York with its scrappy defense and suffocating ball pressure.
Turnovers have been an issue for the Liberty as they find their groove in the new offense.
The Valkyries capitalized on those miscues, turning 15 New York turnovers into 17 points (most of those occurred in the first half).
The Valkyries have a quick turnaround, with a game in Indiana Friday.
Meanwhile, the Liberty have two days to regroup before hosting Paige Bueckers and the Dallas Wings Sunday.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: nypost.com
