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It was the unfancied Connecticut Sun that won game 1 and now all the pressure is on the New York Liberty as they try to level this semifinal before they board the plane to Connecticut. It was the Sun’s defence that won the game 1. Can the Liberty find a better shot selection now? Will the Sun’s experience help them once more? Here are our game 2 Liberty vs Sun predictions.
New York Liberty vs Connecticut Sun – game predictions
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Liberty are in their first playoff appearance since 2015. The Sun are making their fifth consecutive semifinal appearance. Liberty swept the regular-season series between the sides. The Sun won game 1 of this semifinal. Who will prevail now in game 2?
Prediction 1: New York Liberty -9.0 @ -125 (4/5)
Our first Liberty vs Sun prediction backs the Liberty to level this series and not just that but also to cover their -9.0 handicap while doing so. Liberty led in game 1 at halftime and it was only an unnaturally poor second-half display that led to the defeat.
From their 15 regular-season wins at home Liberty achieved 11 double-digit victories, so they often cover such a handicap. They also won all four regular-season matches vs the Suns and two of those were blowout wins with 20+ points. With their season now on the line we expect Liberty to answer the call and win this match decisively.
Prediction 2: New York Liberty to win the first quarter @ -200 (1/2)
Liberty are known for their fast starts to matches and they led at halftime in game 1 on Sunday. The hosts will play with even more desperation now as they try to level this semifinal so we expect them to be very focused and decisive early on.
These odds were correct at the time of writing.
Liberty vs Sun preview – bright talent vs experience
Fresh from lifting the Commissioners’ Cup in August New York Liberty entered this semifinal full of confidence and hope. The Sun crushed that in Game 1 though and Connecticut lead 1-0 entering the second clash between the teams in the Big Apple.
New York Liberty news, injuries, and starting lineups
New York Liberty were simply awful in the second half on Sunday and this is why they lost. Liberty led 40-37 at halftime in game vs the Sun. However, they scored just 23 points in the next 2 quarters and logically lost the match 63-78.
Liberty shot only 29.6% from distance in this match (8 out of 27). They also committed 14 turnovers to only 8 for the Sun and pretty much beat themselves. Forward Stewart was the team’s top scorer with 19 points but she shot 0-8 from distance.
Liberty’s big mistake was that they didn’t use often enough their star centre Jones. Jones had 14 points on 5 of 8 shooting, 11 rebounds and 2 blocks. However, she took only 8 shots and really should have been taking at least double that because the Sun don’t have anybody of that size to guard her.
We expect that adjustments will be made and Jones will become the primary target in attack now in game 2.
Liberty Injury Report:
Han Xu (C) – out
Liberty Starting Lineup:
Courtney Vandersloot, Sabrina Ionescu, Breanna Stewart, Betnijah Laney, Jonquel Jones
Connecticut Sun news, injuries, and starting lineups
Connecticut Sun offered suffocating second-half defence in game 1 to win 78-63. Last season’s beaten WNBA Finalists are in their fifth consecutive semifinal appearance and this experience showed in game 1.
Allen shot lights out in this match to help for the win. She had 19 points and shot 4 out of 6 from distance. To lead all scorers Bonner finished with 20 points, with 7 rebounds and 3 blocks to add to that.
The Sun defended their paint very well and dared Liberty to beat them from the 3-point line. Using the same tactics that worked in game 1 seems obvious. However, the Sun can’t rely on their opponents shooting below 30% from distance in every match and they need to tighten their perimeter defence too.
Sun Injury Report:
N/A
Sun Starting Lineup:
Rebecca Allen, Tiffany Hayes, Tyasha Harris, Alyssa Thomas, DeWanna Bonner
Liberty vs Sun head-to-head record in 2023
- 24.09.23 WNBA New York Liberty vs Connecticut Sun 63-78 [WNBA semifinal Game 1]
- 02.09.23 WNBA New York Liberty vs Connecticut Sun 89-58
- 24.08.23 WNBA Connecticut Sun vs New York Liberty 90-95 OT (82-82)
- 27.06.23 WNBA Connecticut Sun vs New York Liberty 81-89
- 27.05.23 WNBA New York Liberty vs Connecticut Sun 81-65
New York Liberty vs Connecticut Sun game details
- Date & Time: Tuesday, September 26, 2023, 00:00 a.m. GMT / 07:00 p.m. ET
- Venue: Barclays Center in New York City, New York
- Where to watch the match: Sky Sports Arena (UK/Ireland), ESPN (USA), Hulu TV, fuboTV, or the WNBA App/League Pass
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