Liberty top Aces tp clinch playoff berth

Sabrina Ionescu scored 23 points, Jonquel Jones had a double-double and the visiting New York Liberty used a fourth-quarter surge to beat the Las Vegas Aces 79-67 on Saturday and become the first WNBA team this season to clinch a playoff spot.

Jones finished with 10 points, 17 rebounds and seven assists for New York, which scored 12 straight points after Las Vegas closed within 67-63 on Chelsea Gray's 3-pointer with 6:24 left in the fourth.

Gray finished with 13 points for the Aces (16-9), who were led by A'ja Wilson's 24 points and 11 boards.

Breanna Stewart added 18 points and seven rebounds for the league-leading Liberty (23-4), who won their sixth straight game.

After Gray's trey pulled Las Vegas within four points, Leonie Fiebich responded with a 3-pointer from the top of the key to push New York ahead 70-63.

Ionescu added two free throws before Jones found Kayla Thornton in the right corner for a 3-pointer that made it 75-63 with 4:46 left.

Stewart's 12-footer at the 2:56 mark capped the 12-0 run, giving the Liberty a 79-63 cushion.

New York outshot the Aces 40.5 percent to 36.9 percent and outrebounded them 46-30.

Las Vegas looked rejuvenated early on in its first game since July 16. The Aces immediately pushed the pace on offense and torched the Liberty from outside, converting their first five 3-point attempts to seize a 25-15 lead with 2:43 left in the first quarter.

Kelsey Plum's conventional three-point play at the 2:13 mark of the first quarter pushed the Aces ahead 28-17. New York promptly clamped down and chipped away behind Ionescu, who led all first-half scorers with 17 points.

Ionescu drilled a 16-footer and two threes during a 13-0 run that bridged the first and second quarters and swung the Liberty ahead 30-28. New York held Las Vegas to eight points in the second quarter and carried a 42-36 lead into halftime.

The Aces hung around in a gritty third quarter and pulled within 50-47 on Alysha Clark's 3-pointer with 3:52 left. It was Las Vegas' first trey since the 2:43 mark of the first quarter.

Kennedy Burke buried a triple and Ionescu added a floater to close out the third, giving the Liberty a 59-51 lead.

--Field Level Media