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Pauline Astier sparks Liberty surge as New York holds off Mercury 75-68
NEW YORK (AP) — Pauline Astier scored 16 points and Betnijah Laney-Hamilton added 13 to help the New York Liberty hold on to beat the Phoenix Mercury 75-68 on Friday night.
The teams played two days earlier and the Liberty used a 23-0 run to close out the third quarter and take a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.
On Friday, the Liberty (5-4) led 54-52 with a minute left in the third quarter before using a 13-5 run over the next four minutes to go up 67-57 with 6:59 left in the game. The final play of the spurt saw Jonquel Jones block Kahleah Copper and then Astier threw the ball down the court to a streaking Rebekah Gardner for a layup.
Phoenix (2-7) which has lost five straight for the first time since 2023, answered with an 8-0 run to get within 67-65 with 3:16 left. Astier ended New York’s drought with a driving layup to restore the two-score advantage.
The Mercury trailed 71-65 with 46 seconds left when Monique Akoa Makani hit a 3-pointer. Alyssa Thomas then got a steal on the next possession and Phoenix had a chance to tie it, but DeWanna Bonner’s 30-footer was off. Astier hit two free throws with 8.8 seconds left to seal the win.
Kahleah Copper did what she could to keep the Mercury in the game in the second half. After missing her first seven shots from the field, she had 14 of her 16 points in the third and fourth quarters.
The game marked the return of New York’s Satou Sabally, who was playing against her former team. Sabally signed as a free agent in the offseason with the Liberty, leaving the Mercury. She missed Wednesday’s game as she was still recovering from an illness that forced her to miss most of New York’s game against Portland on Monday.
Sabally didn’t start, but came off the bench midway through the first quarter. She finished with four points in 10 minutes.
Both teams struggled offensively in the first half as New York led 34-31 at the break. The teams combined to miss their first eight shots.
Up next
Mercury: return home to face Minnesota on Monday night.
Liberty: have a few days off before hosting former coach Sandy Brondello and the Toronto Tempo.
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