Wings-Liberty Preview

The New York Liberty finally have a long-awaited victory to build upon.

Following just their second win of the season, the Liberty look to hand the banged-up Dallas Wings a third consecutive defeat on Thursday night at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla.

New York (2-12) is in rebuilding mode, but it expected things to probably go a little better than they have in 2020. Especially, with No. 1 overall pick Sabrina Ionescu (18.3 points per game) in the mix. However, with Ionescu hurt, the Liberty have struggled even more -- particularly on the offensive end, where they rank at the bottom of the league in scoring (74.9 points per game) and field-goal percentage (38.4).

That said, New York looked nothing like a club with offensive issues while overcoming a 16-point deficit to pull out a 101-99 win over Chicago on Tuesday night, snapping a seven-game slide. Amanda Zahui B had 22 points with 12 rebounds and Layshia Clarendon hit a pair of free throws with 0.3 seconds left. The Liberty shot 55.9 percent from the field and hit 14 of their 30 3-point attempts.

"This team is tough," Zahui B told Empire Sports Media. "After the game, it was almost like a relief. We've worked so hard. It's a new group. We're young and we haven't folded yet. Any other team would've folded a long time ago. That just shows how tough we really are. I'm so proud of them."

Clarendon (12.6 ppg) and Zahui B (10.7 ppg, 8.2 rpg) are doing their part to guide the Liberty during this rough season, that includes a 93-80 loss to Dallas on July 29. The Wings (5-10) overcame 33 points from Ionescu in that contest, with Arike Ogunbowale scoring 20 points and using an 11-2 second-quarter run to essentially take control of the game.

Moriah Jefferson had 13 points in that contest and Isabelle Harrison pulled down six rebounds for the Wings. However, both players are done for the season due to injuries. Jefferson (5.0 ppg, 3.1 rpg) is dealing with a knee issue while Harrison (6.4 ppg, 4.6 rpg) injured her left ankle.

Without the two, Dallas fell 96-92 to surging Las Vegas on Tuesday. Rookie Satou Sabally had 28 points with 11 rebounds for the Wings, who rallied from a 12-point, fourth-quarter hole to get within two in the final seconds of the game.

While Ogunbowale leads the WNBA averaging 21.5 points, Sabally (12.3 ppg, 7.5 rpg) has enjoyed a strong season after being taken with the second overall pick in the draft. She scored 12 in the win over New York.