New York is running out of chances to avoid a brutal first round matchup
By Noah Zimmerman
noah@queensledger.com
BARCLAYS CENTER – The Golden State Valkyries seared to an easy victory at the Barclays Center last Thursday, completing a sweep of the season series against the Liberty. While New York went on to blow out the Chicago Sky over the weekend, the loss exploited some serious weaknesses and highlighted the importance of escaping a low playoff seed.
Golden State has matched up well against New York all year. Led by Gabby Williams, they’re a great three-and-D team. They’ve allowed just 75.4 points per game on 41.8% shooting, the best defensive mark in the WNBA. From the perimeter, the Valkyries lead the league with 10.6 threes made per game.
That’s exactly how they took care of business at the Barclays Center, holding New York to a season-low 60 points while hitting 13 three pointers. They led by 12 at halftime, pulling away big time in the second half.
The Liberty bounced back with a blowout of their own against Chicago, but they’re in a tough spot with just four games left to creep up the standings. As the league enters a late-season break, New York is in a three-way tie for the 6th seed, level with the Dallas Wings and Washington Mystics with a 24-16 record.
Those three teams sit just two games behind the Atlanta Dream and Indiana Fever, who are tied for 4th place. The Las Vegas Aces are one more game ahead in third, with the Minnesota Lynx and Valkyries almost certainly finishing first and second, respectively.
Home court advantage is still in play, but New York will have to be nearly perfect in their final four games of the season. The key is to avoid a tough matchup in Round 1, with a series against Golden State spelling certain doom. New York might be able to shock the Lynx, but it doesn’t look like anyone can take them down in a series this year.
If the Liberty can finish 5th or 6th, they’ll have a much more favorable matchup against the Aces, Dream, or Fever. If they can make the push for 4th they’ll host the first-round series.
Liberty Players Off to Berlin for World Cup
A handful of Liberty players are headed to Berlin for the 2026 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup, taking place over the next few weeks.
Star forward Breanna Stewart was named to the Team USA roster, though Sabrina Ionescu didn’t make the cut. For France, guard duo Marine Johannes and Pauline Astier will make the trip to Germany. Two bigs will also head to Berlin; Han Xu will be playing for China and Raquel Carrera for Spain. New addition Elizabeth Balogun will be representing Nigeria.
For the hosts Germany, Leonie Fiebich was just barely able to make the trip home, coming back from an injury in late August. Satou Sabally will miss the tournament as she continues to recover from a troublesome head injury.
The Women’s Basketball World Cup tips off on Friday, September 4. Stewie and the USA will take on Han Xu and China at 8:15am ET. At 11:45, Fiebich will take on Carrera as Germany plays Spain. On Monday, September 7 Balogun and Nigeria will take on Johannes, Astier, and France in the final round of group stage games.
The tournament concludes on Sunday the 13 with WNBA action resuming on Thursday the 17. New York returns to action on Friday the 18 when they head to Minnesota to take on the top-seeded Lynx. After that, they head to Toronto for a final road game before hosting the Atlanta Dream in a pair of games at the Barclays Center to finish the season.
