Liberty stop Caitlin Clark on final play to complete furious rally for thrilling win over Fever

INDIANAPOLIS – Boos and cheers rained down on Sabrina Ionescu as she stepped up to the free-throw line. 

Ionescu, a career 90.7 percent free-throw shooter, drained both shots to give the Liberty a two-point lead with 2.9 seconds left. 

Everyone knew what the Fever were going to do.

This was going to be Caitlin Clark’s shot. 

But Natasha Cloud wasn’t even going to let her have the chance to get a shot off. 

Cloud swatted the ball from Clark as time expired, securing the Liberty’s 90-88 win at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Saturday afternoon.

After back-to-back dominant wins to open the season, the Liberty got their first major stress test.

Jonquel Jones had 26 points and 12 rebounds.

Ionescu added 23 points.

Breanna Stewart and Cloud scored 16 points each.  

The Liberty squandered a 15-point lead and found themselves in a 12-point hole early in the fourth.

New York then buckled down and clawed its way back into the game for its third straight win.

Maybe Saturday was exactly what the Liberty needed. 

Up to that point, everything had seemed to be too easy for New York. 

There were some areas of concern that coach Sandy Brondello had with the team.

And how mad can a coach be when the team is winning? 

But the Fever put a spotlight on some of the Liberty’s issues, such as rebounding, complacency and interior defense. 

Aliyah Boston in the pick-and-roll with Clark was a problem all day for New York.

Boston finished with 27 points and 13 rebounds. The Fever outscored the Liberty in the paint 52-42. 

The Liberty’s biggest issues came in the third quarter.

They got too comfortable and lackadaisical. 

Indiana erased a nine-point halftime deficit and outscored the Liberty 30-13 in the third quarter. 

Clark may have had a rocky start, but she rediscovered her shooting stroke in the second half. 

After not making a 3 in her last game and missing her first seven attempts from deep, Clark drained her first 3 of the day late in the third.

Her four-point play gave the Fever a 73-68 lead with about a minute left in the quarter. 

Then, Clark punctuated the Fever’s dominant quarter with one of her signature step-back 3 at the buzzer. She celebrated the basket and her team’s 76-68 lead with an emphatic fist pump. 

Clark finished with 18 points and 10 assists. 

The Liberty return to action Tuesday to host the Valkyries.