WNBA New York Liberty

New York Liberty Game Notes - Game #17 - Los Angeles Sparks - Wednesday, July 22 - 10:30 Pm (ET)

July 22, 2015 - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
New York Liberty News Release


NEW YORK LIBERTY (11-5) at LOS ANGELES SPARKS (3-12)

Wednesday, July 22 - Los Angeles, Calif. - 10:30 PM (ET)

Broadcast: MSG

The New York Liberty's five day, three game, road trip through the Western Conference concludes with a matchup against the Los Angeles Sparks on Wednesday night at the Staples Center at 7:30 p.m. (PT). The Liberty is coming off its second-straight comeback win, erasing an eight-point second half deficit to edge Seattle, 81-77, on Tuesday night. The Sparks are also coming off a victory, dispatching the Phoenix Mercury at home, 70-65, on Tuesday night. This will conclude the season-series between New York and Los Angeles, with the Liberty winning the first meeting 79-70 at Madison Square Garden. Sugar Rodgers erupted for 23 points in that win, while Kristi Toliver paced the Sparks with a game-high 30.

LIBERTY FIRST IN THE EAST, OFF TO BEST START SINCE 2001

With its come-from-behind 81-77 win at Seattle on July 21, New York maintained control of first place in the Eastern Conference and improved to 11-5 overall, which is the best start for the franchise since the 2001 season. Winners of seven of its last eight games, New York has won four games in a row for the first time since July 2011. The Liberty continue to boast some of the best defensive number in the league, leading the WNBA in opponent field goal percentage at .377 and ranking third in the league in points allowed per game at 71.9. New York has established Madison Square Garden as one of the toughest places to play in the WNBA with a 6-2 record, and the Liberty are above .500 on the road with a 5-3 mark.

TINA CHARLES ERUPTS FOR 30 POINTS IN WIN AT SEATTLE

All-Star starting center Tina Charles propelled the Liberty to an 81-77 victory at Seattle on July 21, scoring a season-high 30 points on 14-of-24 shooting from the field, her first 30-point game of the season and third as a member of the New York Liberty. She stopped two points shy of matching her career high of 32 points, established last season in a win over the Minnesota Lynx, but did tie a personal best with 14 makes from the field. Charles scored 12 of her points in the 4th quarter, when she shot 6-of-9, to help New York overcome a deficit when heading into the final period for a second time in as many games.

LAST TIME OUT - NEW YORK 81, SEATTLE 77

New York has won four games in a row for the first time since July 1-13, 2011. New York is off to its best start (11-5) since 2001. That year the Liberty opened the season with a 16-5 record.

Tina Charles finished with 30 points, the most for a Liberty player this season and her third 30-point game as a member of the Liberty. She shot 14-of-24 from the field.

Swin Cash scored six points to move past Sheryl Swoopes for 14th place all-time She has 4,879 points in her 14-year WNBA career.

Cash also played 21 minutes, passing Becky Hammon for 10th place in WNBA history. She has 12,553 minutes in her career.

New York trailed by one heading into the fourth and has now come back from a deficit heading into the final quarter in back-to-back games. Prior to that the Liberty were 0-5 when trailing heading into the fourth quarter.

New York was dominant in the paint once again, the Liberty scored a season-high 52 points in the paint.

The Liberty led 26-13 after the first quarter but were outscored 32-14 in the second. The 32 2nd-quarter points tied the most in any quarter for a New York opponent this season.

Seattle shot 48.4 percent from the field, the highest shooting percentage for a New York opponent this season.

Tanisha Wright scored 12 points for her eighth double-digit scoring effort and led New York in assists (5) and rebounds (6).

TINA CHARLES NAMED EASTERN CONFERENCE PLAYER OF THE WEEK

For the first time this season, New York center Tina Charles has been tabbed as the WNBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week it was announced by the league office on July 20. Charles was a force for New York, as the Liberty went 3-0 in the previous week, picking up wins over San Antonio, Connecticut and Phoenix, scoring in double figures in all three games with a pair of double-doubles averaging 18.0 points and 10.7 rebounds per game while shooting 44.4 percent from the field. She had 22 points and 12 rebounds in a big home win over the Sun and followed that up with 18 points and a season-high 14 rebounds as New York won at Phoenix, 75-73, for the first time since 2012. The Eastern Conference All-Star starter is enjoying a tremendous 2015 season, ranking fifth in the league in scoring (17.4 ppg) and fifth in rebounding (9.0 rpg) with seven double-doubles.

DEFENSIVE INTENSITY

The Liberty continue to lead the WNBA in opponent field goal percentage at .377 but for just the second time this season New York has seen an opponent top 40.0 percent from the field in back-to-back games. Phoenix shot 43.1 percent from the floor on July 18, and the Seattle Storm were a blistering 48.4 percent, the highest field goal percentage for a New York foe in 2015. However, the Liberty found a way to win both contests and is 7-4 when allowing 70-plus points.

MOVING ON UP

Liberty forward Swin Cash has recently been moving up the charts in a couple of all-time statistical categories. Cash's appearance against the San Antonio Stars on July 16 was her 427th in a WNBA game, which moved her into sole possession of eighth place on the all-time list, breaking a tie with Tully Bevilaqua. Against the Seattle Storm on July 21, Cash made a couple more notable jumps. Scoring six points, she jumped Sheryl Swoopes for 14th place all-time with 4,879-career points, and her 21 minutes vaulted her up to No. 10 all-time, passing Becky Hammon, with 12,553 minutes.

DISHING INTO THE TOP-15

Tanisha Wright led New York with five assists in its win at Seattle on July 21, and in doing so passed teammate Swin Cash for 15th on the WNBA all-time assist list with 1,065 over the course of her 11-year career. This season, Wright leads New York and ranks eighth in the WNBA, averaging 3.6 assists per game.

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