Liberty Can't Slow Fever's Hot Shooting in 106-92 Loss

Sabrina Ionescu and Breanna Stewart scored 19 points apiece Tuesday night, but the New York Liberty lost 106-92 to the Indiana Fever at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

Ionescu made 7 of 11 shots and finished with 5 assists, 4 rebounds, and 2 steals. She moved past Tari Phillips for fourth on the Liberty's career rebounding list. Ionescu has also made at least one 3-pointer in 17 straight games.

Stewart had 7 rebounds, 5 assists, and a steal. She has scored in double figures with at least one steal or block in 24 consecutive games, the longest active run in the WNBA this season. Stewart's franchise record is 25.

Both Ionescu and Stewart had at least 19 points, 4 rebounds, and 5 assists. It was the 12th time in Liberty history two players reached those numbers in the same game.

Indiana put together a 10-0 run midway through the first quarter and led 29-23 after one. Stewart scored or assisted on 15 of New York's 23 points in the period.

The Liberty won the rebounding battle 8-4 in the second quarter, but Indiana stretched the lead to 64-46 by halftime. The Fever made 11 3-pointers before the break and finished the night 16-of-25 from beyond the arc.

Liberty coach Chris DeMarco said New York was committed to taking away the paint and needed better contests when Indiana kicked the ball back out.

"Yeah, I thought we did that in the second half, but like Stewie said, if a team is going to shoot 64%, it's going to be tough to win those games," DeMarco said. "Certainly there's things we have to do better, contest some of those threes and rotate better. But overall, we have to play our game, and we know that."

Stewart said New York wants to attack the offensive glass without giving teams easy opportunities to run the other way.

"Yeah, so I mean, we want to crash every time, because basically you see it tonight — we got a lot of O-boards," Stewart said. "But if we crash and we're getting in the mix and we're getting the ball, they're not able to kind of run out.

"But also, even if we're not getting the ball, if we're crashing correctly, we should be on the top side of the other player," Stewart added. "You know what I mean? Like, the other team's offensive player."

New York opened the second half on an 11-2 run and got within 66-57 with 6:51 remaining in the third quarter. Indiana answered and carried an 87-67 lead into the fourth.

The Liberty outscored the Fever 25-19 over the final 10 minutes.

Ionescu said Indiana's guards were able to get downhill, force help, and create shots on the perimeter.

"Yeah, I mean, they're a good shooting team. Their bigs are a handful," Ionescu said. "We have to go and help in the paint, which allows kickouts. Obviously, they have elite guards that are able to get into the paint and kick and spray, and Caitlin kind of being the head of that with 10 assists, and obviously her shooting ability, but also her ability to get downhill and make the right reads.

"It's — if they don't make all those shots, is it a different ball game? Who knows," Ionescu explained. "I think it's just one of those games where the ball went in for them and it didn't for us. And we got to stay true to our process and continue to find ways to take away the three-point line while also taking away the rim. It's not one or the other. And tonight it wasn't that kind of night for us."

New York finished plus-12 on the glass at 39-27 and grabbed 13 offensive rebounds to Indiana's 4. Nine of those came after halftime, matching the Liberty's season high for a half. New York has reached 30 rebounds in 29 games this season, the most in the league.

Jonquel Jones had 14 points, 10 rebounds, and 3 blocks. She made 5 of 7 shots and went 3-of-4 from 3-point range.

Jones became the first Liberty player to post a double-double with at least 3 blocks and 3 made 3-pointers more than once. Elena Delle Donne in 2019 and Napheesa Collier in 2025 are the only other players to do it multiple times in one season.

Tuesday was Jones' 39th career game with multiple blocks and multiple made 3-pointers, moving her past Candace Parker for seventh in league history. She also recorded multiple blocks for the 119th time, tying Taj McWilliams-Franklin for 13th.

Rebecca Allen scored 11 points on 4-of-6 shooting and made 3 of her 5 attempts from deep. She has hit multiple 3-pointers in three consecutive games, her longest run since 2021. Allen has also scored in double figures in each of those three.

Han Xu had 7 points, 5 rebounds, a block, and 2 steals off the bench. The 2 steals matched her career high.

Rebekah Gardner finished with 6 points and 6 rebounds. Four of those rebounds came on the offensive glass, matching her career high for the second game in a row. Marine Johannès scored 8 points off the bench.

DeMarco said New York will continue using its bench when Stewart needs a break.

"Yeah, I mean, Stewie's got to take a break. We can't play for 40 minutes," DeMarco said. "So the strategy there is that our bench has been great, especially the past seven, eight games. And we believe in our bench. And again, they hit tough shots and they made a run, but we're going to continue to believe in our entire roster. And they've been phenomenal.

"And again, they shot the hell out of it," DeMarco added. "And obviously they had three players make four threes and another make three. Great shooting night from them. And sometimes you got to just tip your cap."

New York has scored more than 90 points in nine straight games, setting a league record. The Liberty have also reached 10 second-chance points in 16 consecutive games, a franchise record.

Indiana got 28 points from Kelsey Mitchell. Caitlin Clark had 22 points and 10 assists, while Aliyah Boston finished with 19.

The Liberty are 20-14. Before Tuesday, New York had won eight of nine since a 20-point loss to Indiana in mid-July.