Latest news with #NatashaCloud
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
NY Liberty Make WNBA History Against Connecticut Sun
NY Liberty Make WNBA History Against Connecticut Sun originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Things got out of hand quickly Sunday afternoon at Barclays Center. In front of 17,415 fans, the New York Liberty jumped out to a 31-13 lead in the first quarter, then blew it wide open by halftime, up 60-28. By the final buzzer, the Liberty had cruised to a massive 48-point win in one of the most dominant performances of the season. Advertisement The Connecticut Sun had no answers and fell to 1-5 on the season. Meanwhile, the Liberty stayed perfect, moving to 6-0 with the victory, continuing their best start in franchise history. According to Geoff Magliocchetti, who covers the Liberty for On SI Network, the win was a historic one: "The Liberty become the first team in @WNBA history to have four different players earn a plus-minus of at least 40. Only two other teams had pulled the feat off before." Sabrina Ionescu led the Liberty with 18 points but only played 18 minutes due to the lopsided score. Even in limited action, she posted a plus-minus of +38 and looked sharp running the offense. Advertisement Breanna Stewart and Natasha Cloud tied for the game-high plus-minus at +44. Leonie Fiebich followed with +43, and Jonquel Jones wasn't far behind at +40. The balanced team effort showcased just how deep and dangerous this Liberty squad can be when firing on all cylinders. New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart (30).© Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images On the flip side, it was a rough afternoon for the Sun. Tina Charles and rookie Jacy Sheldon each scored 10 points, but there was little else to celebrate as Connecticut struggled to get stops or generate momentum. The Sun will look to regroup Friday when they host the Atlanta Dream. The Liberty heads to Washington to face the Mystics on Thursday, aiming to extend their unbeaten streak and keep building momentum. Advertisement The last team to post four players with a plus-minus of 40 or more? The Los Angeles Clippers did it on January 15 in a 126-67 blowout over the Brooklyn Nets. Norman Powell, Ivica Zubac, Kawhi Leonard and Derrick Jones Jr. were part of that historic night. Related: Atlanta Dream Coach Had Strong Words After Brittney Griner's Return Related: Sheryl Swoopes Demands Referee From Angel Reese Game Never Officiates Again This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 1, 2025, where it first appeared.
Associated Press
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Associated Press
Stewart and Ionescu lift New York to 82-77 win over Golden State to remain unbeaten
NEW YORK (AP) — Breanna Stewart scored 27 points and Sabrina Ionescu added 24 to help the New York Liberty hold on to beat the Golden State Valkyries 82-77 on Thursday night and remain unbeaten. The teams met on Tuesday and New York routed expansion Golden State 95-67, jumping to a 17-point lead in the first quarter. The Valkyries were much more competitive two days later, giving the defending champions all they could handle. New York took a 78-77 lead in the back-and-forth affair on two free throws by Stewart with 1:35 left. Golden State had a few chances to retake the lead, but missed three 3-pointers in the next 35 seconds. After a timeout, the Valkyries then had a 5-second call on the inbounds, giving the Liberty the ball back with 43.6 seconds left. The Liberty (5-0) then ran the clock down on the next possession before Natasha Cloud drove the lane for a layup to make it 80-77 with 24 seconds left. Golden State (2-3) had one last chance but Cecilia Zandalasini missed a potential tying 3-pointer and Cloud hit two free throws. Janelle Salaün led the Valkyries with 18 points and 13 rebounds. New York had scored more than 90 points in each of its first four games, but couldn't do it against Golden State on Thursday. The Liberty fell one game short of tying the Las Vegas Aces as the only team in WNBA history to begin a season with five straight 90-point games, doing so in 2023. That team went on to win its second straight WNBA championship. The Liberty were missing center Jonquel Jones, who was dealing with a left hamstring issue. This was the first of three games in four days for the Liberty, who play at Washington on Friday before hosting Connecticut on Sunday. Actor Jackie Chan was at the game and met with Ionescu and Golden State head coach Natalie Nakase before the game. Nakase is the first Asian American head coach in WNBA history. ___ AP WNBA:
New York Post
6 days ago
- Sport
- New York Post
Natasha Cloud sparkling Liberty start earns her Eastern Conference Player of the Week
We've got you covered on the Liberty beat Join Post Sports+ for exciting subscriber-only features, including real-time texting with Madeline Kenney about all things Liberty and WNBA. tRY IT NOW A championship team needs a sparkling addition to provide a different feel when chasing a repeat title. Anyone can see and hear 10-year veteran and tenacious defender Natasha Cloud — the Liberty's answer. Advertisement Cloud has had an immediate impact on the Liberty offense, which led to her first career Eastern Conference Player of the Week honor on Wednesday after averaging 18.7 points, 7.7 assists, 5.7 rebounds, 2.7 steals, and 1.3 blocks per game over the first three games. That is the best start of her career and it speaks to how well the Liberty offense operates with the 33-year-old in it. A skilled facilitator, Cloud's passing has had a big impact on the Liberty, averaging 8.3 assists per game for an assist percentage of 41.8 across four games. Advertisement Natasha Cloud shoots a jumper during the first half the Liberty's blowout win over the Valkyries on May 27, 2025. Heather Khalifa for the NY Post The 8.3 assists per game surpasses her previous career high of seven assists per game in 2022. Cloud is also on track to chase down her 44.8 assist percentage, also achieved in 2022, while playing with the Mystics. 'She just needed to come to New York, that's all,' Jonquel Jones said in the Liberty's Player of the Week announcement video. Advertisement In the Liberty's convincing 95-67 win over the Valkyries on Tuesday, Cloud recorded 10 assists — five of which went to Breanna Stewart, who she often found down low or up by the charity stripe for a right elbow jumper. Breanna Stewart and Natasha Cloud of the New York Liberty smile after the Liberty's blowout win over the Valkyries. NBAE via Getty Images The performance gave her the No. 10 overall ranking on the WNBA's all-time career assists list with 1,555. 'I wouldn't say we have gotten that much practice time together,' Stewart said of Cloud after Tuesday's victory. 'I think our chemistry can only grow, but she has a great awareness of where people are. Especially Golden State, they're in a zone a lot. So, to break the zone, you want to get the ball to the middle. Sometimes I'm sealing off a guard most of the time and Tash was able to lead me to where I wanted the ball.' Advertisement Cloud leads the Liberty in assists to help their 25.3 assist average that is just 0.2 behind the league-leading Lynx in that category. The Liberty are off to a 4-0 start, tying their third-best undefeated start in franchise history from 2024. In 1997, the Liberty started the season by going 7-0. In 2007, they went on a 5-0 opening run. A soft schedule over the next five games gives the Liberty a shot to break the franchise record. On Thursday, they will face the Valkyries again and their upcoming matchups include the Sun, Sky and two meetings with the Mystics until their second meeting with the Fever on June 14. Advertisement Nyara Sabally (right knee) is listed as questionable for Thursday.
USA Today
26-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Liberty vs. Valkyries Injury Report, Betting Odds
Liberty vs. Valkyries Injury Report, Betting Odds | May 27 The Golden State Valkyries' (2-1) injury report has zero players listed heading into a Tuesday, May 27 matchup with the New York Liberty (3-0, also zero injured players) at Barclays Center, with a start time of 7 p.m. ET. Watch this game on Fubo! (regional restrictions may apply) New York Liberty injury report today Golden State Valkyries injury report today Liberty vs. Valkyries game info Game day: Tuesday, May 27, 2025 Tuesday, May 27, 2025 Game time: 7 p.m. ET 7 p.m. ET Location: Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn, New York Arena: Barclays Center Barclays Center TV channel: WWOR, KPIX, and Liberty Live WWOR, KPIX, and Liberty Live Live Stream: ESPN+ Watch this game on Fubo! (regional restrictions may apply) Liberty players to watch (2024) Breanna Stewart put up 20.4 points per game last season. Natasha Cloud collected 6.9 assists per game and Jonquel Jones pulled down 9.0 rebounds per contest. Sabrina Ionescu was prolific from the three-point line a season ago, hitting 2.8 per game. Stewart averaged 1.7 steals per game. Jones collected 1.3 blocks a game. Valkyries players to watch (2024 stats) Tiffany Hayes put up 9.5 points per game last season. Julie Vanloo dished out 4.3 assists per game and Monique Billings pulled down 5.8 rebounds per matchup. Vanloo was prolific from the three-point line a season ago, connecting on 1.8 per game. Kayla Thornton averaged 0.7 steals per game. Billings collected 0.5 blocks a game. Watch this game on Fubo! (regional restrictions may apply)
Fox News
25-05-2025
- Sport
- Fox News
New York sportscaster takes subtle jab at Caitlin Clark amid no-foul call in Fever's loss to Liberty
The New York Liberty visited Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever on Saturday. The reigning WNBA champions won 90-88 to keep their record unblemished. But much of the chatter after the game centered around the game's officiating, particularly the last 10 seconds of the close contest. While there were at least three calls of note that favored the Liberty, the Fever's final possession seemed to draw the lion's share of the attention. Clark had possession with Indiana trailing by two with a chance to tie. But New York guard Natasha Cloud knocked the ball away from Clark. Referees did not blow the whistle for a foul despite pleas from last year's WNBA reigning rookie of the year. The referees' decision in the closing seconds, and Clark's reaction, sparked mixed reactions across the sports world. CBS News New York sports anchor and reporter Steve Overmyer added his two cents during a recent broadcast. "On the final play, Natasha Cloud comes up with the game-winning steal. Was it a foul? Take a closer look," Overmyer said as a replay of the moment was shown on the broadcast. "She got all ball. Clark tried to sell it like she got hit by a sniper, but there was no foul, no call," he concluded. Cloud also blocked a shot from DeWanna Bonner. Some observers argued Cloud made contact with Bonner, not just the ball, on the play. However, officials did not call a foul on the play. Indiana head coach Stephanie White took issue with Saturday's officiating. She described the non-call on Bonner's shot attempt "egregious." "I thought it was egregious, honestly. I thought it was obvious," White said. Elsewhere, Fever guard Lexie Hull was whistled for a foul against New York's Sabrina Ionescu. Indiana could not use one of their challenges for the play in question because they had already exhausted their timeouts. White offered her assessment of the play. "It was an offensive player veering into the defensive player's path. We have to be able to play through it. But at the same time, I feel like it's really disrespectful," the coach said. "There's a system to making sure we can send [concerns about officiating] in and communicate our grievances, so to speak. I don't know that I ever feel like the system works. We're not looking for a change, we're just looking for consistency." Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
