This was Finals MVP Jonquel Jones, reappearing on the playoff stage right on time for a Liberty team suddenly with the mojo to add another piece of hardware to its collection.
Owning the boards and playing bully ball. Stepping out to hit 3s. Dishing underhanded assists on the break, for a treat.
Jones scored the first seven points of the Liberty’s 87-71 win over the Lynx on Tuesday night at Barclays Center and didn’t let up from there, the best player on a floor strewn with All-Stars as she lifted her team into the semifinals.
Jones scored on a putback on the Liberty’s first possession, canned a 3-pointer on their next trip and followed with another putback. The Liberty never trailed.
“I just wanted to come out and be aggressive,” Jones said.
The 32-year-old, who claimed MVP honors when the Liberty triumphed over the Lynx for the title in a five-game slugfest in 2024, finished with 21 points, 13 rebounds and two assists, putting on a modern-big master class.
The Lynx, who start the 6-foot-2 Natasha Howard at center and quickly went small after Jones demoralized them in the early going, didn’t have an answer.
“Obviously, we had a size advantage against them, and I felt like being in the paint was just going to be advantageous for me and also for the team,” Jones said. “My biggest thing was just trying to affect the game in that way, whether it was rebounding or posting up.”
Her and-1 over Napheesa Collier with 6:10 remaining that pushed the Liberty’s lead to 79-60 was the exclamation point.
“When JJ is doing that, it makes our jobs easier,” Sabrina Ionescu said. “For me as a point guard, it’s my job to try and get her easy ones, especially when she’s rolling and sealing, and glad we were able to find her tonight.”
Jones also anchored the Liberty’s defense, which held the Lynx to 38.2 percent shooting, including just 18-for-48 on 2-pointers.
“They were very good defending the rim,” Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve said.
Jones’ performance was a 180 from her struggles in the Liberty’s first-round playoff exit a year ago, when she averaged 5.7 points on combined 7-for-26 shooting in a three-game loss to the Mercury.
And it bodes well for a matchup in the next round with the Dream or Mystics, two teams with athletic young bigs who gave the Liberty trouble during the regular season.
“She set the tone for us, offensively, defensively, her ability to get on the boards,” Ionescu said. “That’s what JJ does.”
