Liberty squander 19-point lead in momentum-halting loss to Sky

The Liberty had all the momentum Sunday afternoon against the Chicago Sky.

They were on a four-game winning streak, including Friday’s comeback win in Chicago on Breanna Stewart’s shot with 7.1 seconds left, and they had a 19-point lead Sunday in the second half.

When it was over, all they had was their first loss since the season opener.

Kahleah Copper scored 27 points and Courtney Williams added 12, including 10 in the fourth quarter, to help the Sky rally for an 86-82 win at Barclays Center.

Breanna Stewart had 20 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Liberty.

“Hopefully this is a wake-up. Some players need to wake up a little bit more. We went away from what worked for us,” Liberty coach Sandy Brondello said. “Our shot profile was terrible. We don’t find ways to get [Stewart] touches. We just didn’t play tough enough. Disappointing, but the film won’t lie. So we’ve got to use it as a learning opportunity now.”

Down by 19 early in the third quarter, the Sky (4-3) pulled ahead for the first time in the game on Williams’ jumper with 4:24 left that made it 72-70.

A few seconds later, Williams drew an offensive foul on Stewart and after a challenge by New York (4-2) was denied, the spirited guard playfully bowed to the crowd, drawing loud boos.

“Got to have fun with it,” Williams said smiling. “They were booing me. Going to turn y’all up.”

Stewart then scored the next six points for the Liberty, tying the game at 76 with just over two minutes left.

Williams answered with a 3-pointer with 1:42 left.

Courtney Vandersloot’s layup with 59 seconds left got the Liberty within 80-78. Williams was then fouled and hit the first of two free throws to make it a three-point game.

After a timeout, Sabrina Ionescu was charged with an offensive foul on the inbounds with 27 seconds left.

Chicago then hit four free throws in the final 17 seconds to seal the win. It was the second consecutive year that Chicago pulled off a monumental comeback. Last season, the Sky rallied from 28 points down to beat the Aces, setting a WNBA record.