Liberty Beaten at Home by Golden State
Published on May 22, 2026 under Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
New York Liberty News Release
NEW YORK - The New York Liberty (3-2) fell to the Golden State Valkyries (3-1), 87-70.
Breanna Stewart led the Liberty with 18 points on 53.8 percent (7-for-13) shooting from the field while grabbing a game-high nine rebounds. Stewart passed Becky Hammon (2,367 points) for the fifth-highest scorer in Liberty franchise history and moved ahead of DeLisha Milton-Jones (2,083) for 17th on the WNBA's all-time field goals made list. Stewart became the second Liberty player to begin a season with five consecutive games of at least 15 points and seven rebounds, tying Tina Charles for the longest such streak to begin a season in franchise history.
Jonquel Jones put up 16 points on 50 percent (6-for-12) shooting from the field to go with eight rebounds, three assists and a block. Jones also knocked down her 150th 3-pointer in a Liberty uniform and now holds the highest field-goal percentage (51.9%) and the second-highest 3-point percentage (39.2%) by any player with 150+ makes from beyond the arc in franchise history.
Pauline Astier added seven points on 60 percent (3-for-5) shooting from the field and 100 percent (1-for-1) shooting from deep as she became the first rookie in WNBA history to shoot 60 percent from the field on more than 40 attempts through five career games. Astier has totaled 74 points through her first five games, only trailing Kia Nurse (81 points) for the most by a Liberty rookie through five career games in franchise history.
Rebekah Gardner paced the Liberty's reserves with 12 points, two rebounds and a block for her second consecutive game scoring in double figures. Gardner shot 80 percent (4-for-5) from the field and 50 percent (1-for-2) from long range after entering tonight's game as the WNBA leader in true shooting percentage (77 percent) among players with at least 20 field goal attempts so far in 2026.
Satou Sabally made her Liberty debut and added five points, four rebounds, two assists and a block in 16 minutes. Julie Vanloo dished out eight assists to reach 27 dimes on the season, the most assists off the bench through the first five games of a season by any reserve in Liberty franchise history.
New York outscored Golden State 12-8 in the paint and shot 50 percent (7-for-14) from the field in the first quarter but trailed 25-15 after one. The Liberty cut a double-digit deficit to a single possession with an 8-0 run from 8:51 to 7:38 in the second quarter. New York shot 53.8 percent (7-for-13) from the field and 66.7 percent (2-for-3) from deep in the second quarter to make it a 42-34 game at halftime. Jones scored half of the Liberty's points in the third quarter while grabbing five rebounds to set her season high for rebounds in a single quarter. Golden State entered the final quarter with a 63-46 advantage and held on for an 87-70 win over New York. The Liberty finished with a 37-36 advantage on the boards and a 36-28 edge in paint scoring against the Valkyries. New York also set a franchise record for total points through the first five games of a season with 470.
LIBERTY 70 | VALKYRIES 87
NEW YORK (3-2) | GOLDEN STATE (3-1)
May 21, 2026
POSTGAME PRESS CONFERENCE | GAME PHOTOS
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 FINAL
VALKYRIES 25 17 21 24 87
LIBERTY 15 19 12 24 70
GAME LEADERS NEW YORK GOLDEN STATE
POINTS Stewart (18) Williams (16)
REBOUNDS Stewart (9) Amihere (8)
ASSISTS Vanloo (8) Burton (7)
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