After the Las Vegas Aces shut down Sabrina Ionescu in Game 3 of the WNBA semifinals, the New York Liberty guard rediscovered her shooting stroke in Game 4.
In Game 3, Ionescu was held to four points on 1-of-7 shooting during a 95-81 loss. She got off to a much better start Sunday. In the first quarter, she drilled four three-pointers, scoring 12 points.
Ionescu finished with a team-high 22 points on 7-of-14 shooting, seven rebounds, two assists and two steals. Her sharpshooting helped the Liberty beat the Aces 76-62 and clinch their second straight WNBA Finals berth.
In 2023, New York lost to Vegas in four games in the Finals. Although the Aces have 2024 MVP A’ja Wilson, Vegas guard Kelsey Plum indicated Ionescu and Co. are a much stronger squad this season.
“New York is a lot better than they were last year,” Plum said following the loss, via SB Nation’s Noa Dalzell. “If you go down the line, like pound for pound, individually, all of them are better.”
Ionescu has certainly raised her game this postseason. Through five playoff games, she had averaged 20.4 points per game on 48.6% shooting to go with 4.8 rebounds and 5.8 assists. In 10 playoff contests last season, the 26-year-old logged 13.7 points on 39.3% shooting with 4.2 rebounds and 4.8 assists.
In this year’s series against the Aces, Ionescue scored 20 points or more in the three games the Liberty won. The Liberty will face the Minnesota Lynx or Connecticut Sun in the WNBA Finals. On Sunday, the Sun forced a decisive Game 5 in Minneapolis via a 92-82 win.
The Liberty have made six trips to the WNBA Finals but are still seeking their first title. Perhaps Ionescu will carry the team to its first championship and show why it took her with the No. 1 overall pick in 2020.