Short-handed Liberty aim to weather storm vs. Wings (Jun 1, 2017)
The New York Liberty were already playing short-handed due to the torn Achilles point guard Brittany Boyd sustained in the second game of the season.
Now they will spend the next few weeks dealing with another significant injury, starting with Friday's home game against the Dallas Wings at Madison Square Garden.
While Boyd is recovering from a serious injury, Epiphanny Prince and Kia Vaughn are going to be away from the team fulfilling overseas commitments.
Prince, who averages 15.8 points per game and was starting at point guard after Boyd's injury, will be playing for Russia in the EuroBasket Tournament qualifier that runs from June 16-25. Vaughn averages 6.4 points and four rebounds and is playing for host Czech Republic in the event.
By the time the tournament ends, the Liberty (2-3) will be through their 11th game. The first contest after the conclusion of the tournament is June 29 at Washington.
New York hopes to stay afloat by producing better showings down the stretch in games. In Tuesday's 90-75 home loss to the Los Angeles Sparks, the Liberty gave up the first 11 points of the fourth quarter immediately after scoring the final eight points of the third.
"We have to dig deep and work harder and (be) smarter," New York coach Bill Laimbeer said of playing short-handed. "We're going to take our lumps, I assume. It's going to be tough. But we can win some games."
To avoid fourth quarters going awry, the Liberty might need more from leading scorer Tina Charles. Charles scored 25 points against the Sparks, but only six of those were after halftime.
Charles averages 18.6 points but in her last two fourth quarters, she has totaled six points.
The Liberty will have a new player in their attempt to fill the absences as they re-signed rookie guard Lindsay Allen. Allen was New York's second-round pick out of Notre Dame but was waived after three preseason games.
Dallas is 3-2 after cruising to an 89-62 home over the Indiana Fever on Tuesday and now faces a significant stretch. After facing New York and Indiana in back-to-back games, Dallas faces Washington, Los Angeles and undefeated Minnesota.
The blowout win occurred three days after a 107-65 loss at Phoenix.
Karima-Christmas Kelly scored a career-high 27 points before sitting out of the fourth quarter. She made 10 of 14 shots after going 2-of-10 at Phoenix.
"Everyone contributed, especially in front of our fans," Dallas guard Skylar Diggins-Smith said. "We are happy with the win obviously. Karima is the gas that runs our car."
The Wings entered the game last in the league at 3-point shooting with a 20.6 percent mark. Dallas made 6-of-14 from long range and improved the league's worst 3-point shooting percentage to 24.7.
Rookie Allisha Gray, who was named WNBA Rookie of the Month for May, added 14 points Tuesday and is averaging 13 points after helping South Carolina to a national championship. She is third on the team in scoring behind Christmas-Kelly and Diggins-Smith.
