Liberty fall to new-look Sun as eight-game win streak is snapped

Sandy Brondello didn’t hesitate before the game.

This could be a preview of the WNBA Finals.

The Liberty were the top seed in the standings — and have been since the earliest stages of the season.

The Sun, whom the Liberty had defeated in six consecutive matchups dating back to their semifinal series last season, sat 3.5 games behind them.

But there was a difference Saturday from each of those meetings. A major one.

Connecticut went out and made the splash trade ahead of the Aug. 20 deadline that doesn’t happen often in the WNBA.

They brought in Marina Mabrey, one of the league’s best 3-point shooters, from the Sky and added her to a lineup that already included Alyssa Thomas and DeWanna Bonner.

It’ll take time for Mabry to fully mesh into the Connecticut lineup, but for one game at Barclays Center, for the final regular-season meeting between these two teams before a potential collision in the playoffs, the Liberty encountered just how difficult it might be to defeat the new-look Sun.

Mabrey finished with 15 points, six rebounds and four assists to propel the Sun to a 72-64 victory over the Liberty, snapping their eight-game winning streak and holding them to a season-low in points.

The Sun’s defense prevented the Liberty from finding any degree of offensive rhythm, too.

Breanna Stewart finished with 15 points while Leonie Fiebich added 14, but Jonquel Jones managed just 10 on 4-for-10 shooting.

The Liberty attempted 32 3-pointers and made just seven of them.

After Stewart connected on a jumper in the opening quarter, Mabrey responded with her first jumper of the game, and she curled around a screen to hit a 3-pointer later in the frame.

The Liberty double-teamed her at one point in the second quarter to create some chaos and force a turnover, but Jones lost possession at the other end — and Mabrey then hit a 3-pointer in transition.

“Their whole identity’s not gonna change,” Brondello said pregame of the Sun adding Mabrey. “They went and got a player that they thought could help them, and I agree with that. They don’t shoot as many 3s as what we do, and that was an area that could complement their team. And Marina’s one of the greatest 3-point shooters. She loves the moment, too.”

When the Liberty attempted to mount a comeback in the fourth quarter, when the Sun gradually kept extending their lead until it hit double-digits, Mabrey took a step up into the paint and absorbed what was eventually ruled a charge against Jones.

Just about everything for the Liberty offensively was disjointed, too.

They only trailed by two after the opening quarter, but that deficit swelled to seven by the end of the third quarter. Sabrina Ionescu — who finished with 12 points — missed her first six 3-pointers before connecting on a deep shot near the logo with the shot clock running out and the final seconds of the half ticking away.

There were plenty of costly turnovers, too, including when Stewart took possession late in the fourth quarter but then gave it right back to Bonner on what was supposed to be an outlet pass.

If the Liberty and the Sun meet in the playoffs, there will again be some lineup changes.

Mabrey might have worked her way into Connecticut’s starting group by then.

Betnijah Laney-Hamilton — the Liberty’s defensive anchor who participated in warmups with the team but didn’t play — is expected to return Monday for the first time since July 6.

Still, in the same answer when she hinted at how this could be a Finals preview and how the Liberty won each of the three matchups this year, Brondello cautioned about not wanting to “give them any hope.”

But that’s exactly what happened.