Fourth-Quarter Meltdown in Gotham: Fire Smoke Shorthanded Liberty 81-74
Fourth-Quarter Meltdown in Gotham: Fire Smoke Shorthanded Liberty 81-74
NEW YORK — There are collapse videos on YouTube with fewer red flags than what the New York Liberty put on display Monday night at Barclays Center. Up by eight entering the final frame, the Liberty completely lost the plot, allowing the Portland Fire to ignite a furious comeback and escape Brooklyn with an 81-74 victory.
The loss marks the third straight defeat for a sliding New York squad (3-4) that is suddenly looking very human. Meanwhile, Portland (4-3) keeps churning out gritty, blue-collar wins that have them looking like a real problem in the standings.
The X-Factor: Sarah Ashlee Barker's Perfect Timing
For the first 35 minutes of the game, Sarah Ashlee Barker was essentially a cardio enthusiast out there, putting up a grand total of zero points. But in the fourth quarter? She decided to become the human embodiment of a flamethrower.
Trailing 65-60 midway through the fourth, Portland went on a devastating 12-0 run, and Barker scored all 7 of her nightly points during the surge. She hit a driving layup and then buried a cold-blooded 3-pointer to give Portland a 67-65 lead—their first taste of the driver's seat since early in the third quarter. New York never recovered from the whiplash.
Carla Leite was the steady hand for the Fire all evening, dropping a team-high 18 points, including a dagger 3-pointer with 13.7 seconds left that ice-watered any hopes of a Liberty miracle.
Stewie's Lone Wolf Act & Johannes' Magic Trick
New York was already playing with one hand tied behind its back, missing superstar guard Sabrina Ionescu. Things went from bad to worse just four minutes into the game when blockbuster free-agent acquisition Satou Sabally—who is still working her way back from a concussion suffered in last year's WNBA Finals—picked up two quick fouls and retreated to the locker room with an illness. She never returned, leaving the offense looking entirely rhythm-less.
Breanna Stewart did everything humanly possible to carry the load, racking up a game-high 25 points.
Play of the Night: French sensation Marine Johannes (11 points) provided the lone bright spot in the third quarter with some absolute wizardry. Dribbling away from the rim toward halfcourt, she launched a blind, over-the-head backward pass to Jonquel Jones for an and-1 layup that put New York up 47-40. It belonged in a museum. Unfortunately, style points don't count toward the final score.
Season Series Sealed
This was the third and final regular-season meeting between these two teams, which is wild considering we are barely two weeks into the schedule. Portland takes the seasonal bragging rights, leaving New York with a lot of film to watch and some serious soul-searching to do.
By The Numbers
Team Q3 Score Q4 Score Top Scorer The Deciding Factor
Portland Fire 49 32 Carla Leite (18) Barker's 7-point personal blitz
New York Liberty 57 17 Breanna Stewart (25) Shorthanded depth & 4th quarter stagnation
Up Next
The Fire head back home to the Pacific Northwest to host Connecticut on Wednesday.
The Liberty will try to stop the bleeding at Barclays on Wednesday when they kick off a two-game set against Phoenix. Let's hope someone checks the thermostat and gets Sabally some chicken noodle soup before tip-off.
