New York Liberty vs. Seattle Storm Preview, Prediction and Odds - 9/2/21
It’s an interconference matchup on the parquet floor as a pair of WNBA teams lock up in the Pacific Northwest. The New York Liberty are on the road as they travel to face the Seattle Storm Thursday night. New York was dropped 74-66 on the road by Minnesota in their most recent contest Tuesday night. Seattle was crushed 107-75 as they were swept in a two-game series at home by Chicago Sunday afternoon in their most recent contest. The Storm have won eight of the previous 10 meetings though they’ve split a pair of matchups this season. It was the Liberty taking an 83-79 win on August 18 before the Storm answered with a 99-83 victory on August 20 with both games coming in the Big Apple.
New York Liberty Looking to Gain Ground in Playoff Picture
New York suffered their fifth straight loss and their eighth defeat in the last nine games as they were dropped by Minnesota on the road Tuesday night in their most recent game. The Liberty enter this game 11-17 on the year and held the final playoff spot by percentage points over the Mystics. On Tuesday, New York was right in the thick of things for nearly three quarters but had one bad stretch that cost them the game. The Liberty was down five after the opening quarter, by two at the half and was within one with 2:16 to play in the third quarter. New York gave up a 10-2 run over the next three minutes to trail by nine and couldn’t get closer than two the rest of the way. The Liberty shot a dismal 32.4% from the field, including five of 24 from beyond the arc, and lost the rebounding battle 43-38. Sabrina Ionescu (seven rebounds, six assists) and Betnijah Laney each had 17 points to lead New York in the loss.
The Liberty comes into this contest 10th in the league in scoring offense with an average of 78.6 points per game. New York is 9th in rebounding (33.9 boards a night) and eighth with 19.2 assists per contest. The Liberty ranks 11th in the league in scoring defense by allowing 85.6 points per game. Betnijah Laney leads the Liberty with 17.8 points plus 5.2 assists a night this season. Sabrina Ionescu (10.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, six assists) and Michaela Onyenwere (8.7 points) are also capable scoring options. Sami Whitcomb (12.8 points, 5.6 boards), Natasha Howard (15.3 points, 6.5 boards), Kylee Shook, Rebecca Allen, Jazmine Jones, Reshanda Gray and DiDi Richards are key contributors for coach Walt Hopkins. New York is 8th in the league in field goal percentage as they shoot 42.3% from the floor as a team. The Liberty is first in the league in made threes per game (10.2) while ranking fourth in three-point shooting at 36.1%. New York is 7th in free throw percentage as they cash in 80.7% of their chances at the stripe. Jones (foot), Whitcomb (ankle) and Onyewere (chest) are all questionable for this contest.
Seattle Storm Seeking to Regroup
Seattle suffered a two-game sweep at home at the hands of Chicago as they were pasted Sunday in the finale of the set. The Storm suffered their third straight loss and dropped to 2-5 since the Olympic break, leaving them 18-10 on the season and third in the WNBA playoff picture, 3.5 games behind the league-leading Sun. Against Chicago Sunday, Seattle gave up an early 8-0 run to break a 5-5 tie and never got back into the game. The Storm trailed by eight after the opening quarter, by 22 at the half and as many as 32 in the game as they went down in defeat. Seattle shot 45.3% from the field, including five of 17 from three-point range, while allowing Chicago to hit 56.2% from the floor and 15 of 22 from beyond the arc. Breanna Stewart finished with 19 points to lead Seattle in the loss.
The Storm comes into this contest second in the league in scoring offense with an average of 84.9 points per game. Seattle is fourth in rebounding (36.4 boards per contest) and is second in the league in assists by dishing out 21.3 dimes per night this year. The Storm are 7th in scoring defense as they allow 80.7 points a game so far this year. Breanna Stewart leads the team with 20.3 points and 9.9 rebounds per contest. Jewell Loyd (18 points, four rebounds, 3.7 assists) and Sue Bird (10.5 points, 5.5 assists) are solid secondary options. Coach Noelle Quinn has a solid group to work with as her team can get production from Katie Lou Samuelson, Jordin Canada, Ezi Magbegor, Stephanie Talbot, Kennedy Burke, Epiphanny Prince and Kiana Williams. The Storm are third in the league in field goal percentage as they convert 44.5% of their shots from the floor this year. Seattle is third in the league in three-point field goals made per game (8.6) and first in three-point percentage as they knock down 37.9% percent from beyond the arc. The Storm are above average at the line, ranking second in the league by converting 83.5% of their chances. Mikiah Herbert Harrington is out for the year as she is pregnant.
Pick: Seattle Storm
While Seattle has struggled coming out of the Olympic break, some of which is admittedly fatigue related, the fact remains that they are solidly in the playoff picture. That’s a luxury that New York simply doesn’t have at this stage of things as they are mere percentage points ahead of ninth-place Washington entering this contest. The Liberty has fallen apart after their hot start and going on the road to face a Seattle team that is admittedly frustrated with the way they’ve played of late. New York is just 5-8 on the road this season and have been outscored by 6.9 points per game while Seattle, even with their recent issues, is still 8-5 at home. You have to think that Seattle can turn things around here and pick up the victory over a flailing Liberty squad.
Total: Over
New York stayed under the total in their last two games entering this one but they had gone over the mark in the five games prior to that. The Liberty have seen the over hit in 16 of their 28 games thanks to their weak defensive presence on the season. Seattle went over the mark in their loss to Chicago, snapping a string of three straight games that stayed under the mark. The Storm have seen the under hit in 15 of their 28 games on the year. Each of the last four meetings between the teams have gone over the mark, including totals of 162 and 182 points in the two games this season. With New York reeling on the defensive end, this one ends up going over the total as well.
