The New York Liberty came so close. They outscored Washington 25-10 in the fourth quarter. They knocked down key three's, including one at the buzzer.
In the end though, they finished one point shy of a fantastic comeback, dropping a 68-67 decision to the Washington Mystics (7-6) at the Verizon Center.
Mystic guard Lindsey Harding finished with game highs in both scoring and rebounding; 23 and 7, respectively.
"After they kind of caught up, we just decided, 'let's just keep pushing, let's keep pushing,'" says Harding. "We kept pushing, we kept penetrating, attacking down low...and, luckily Christon didn't hit that three!"
The Liberty (4-8) had the chance to tie the game when trailing by 4 with 23 seconds to go in the game. Forward Shameka Christon put up a jump shot, yet was fouled by the Mystics' Chasity Melvin, who was called for tripping. After a review by the referees, Christon's shot was judged to have counted from just inside the 3-point line, creating an opportunity for a 3-point play instead of a 4.
However, she missed the free throw. She scored the aforementioned three-pointer as time expired, but only after the Mystics made two free throws of their own.
"The frustrating thing about it is that, all these games that we've lost by making little mistakes on our part," says Christon. "I think the third quarter really killed us. Fourth quarter we had a lot of fight, but, whenever you're down like we were down, I mean it's tough. Washington's a good team."
Mystic players however were mindful of the fact that another big lead slipped away, and that a mammoth effort was needed at the end to win.
"We have to figure out how to close out games, play the defense we want, stop having so many brain lapses, and keep with what's working," adds Harding.
"Every team in the league, you've got to play until the buzzer sounds," says fellow guard Alana Beard, who scored 13 points and grabbed 3 boards. Bernice Mosby came off the bench to score 9.
Liberty Remain Confident
After a 4-8 start, New York is hopeful for the same sort of turnaround that brought them out of a haphazard beginning last season. In 2008, they were 7-7 after 14 games, and went onto win 8 of their next 11, and finish third in the Eastern Conference. They battled the Detroit Shock down to the final minutes of a decisive game 3 in the conference finals, but fell just short.
"It's going to be a mental thing," says Christon. "We've just got to go out and play hard. I cannot say that we played hard tonight. Maybe 25 minutes, maybe 30 minutes we played hard. In this league, that's not going to win us games."
The Liberty head back up to the Big Apple for a Sunday affair with the Atlanta Dream.
Mystics Making It Happen
Washington remains at home for three more games of a homestand that they're currently 2-1 in. They face the red-hot Indiana Fever on Tuesday. Indiana has won a club record 11 straight games, and have a commanding first place lead in the Eastern Conference.
"I would say focus, but that's not something you can work on," claims Beard. "That's something you have to demand for yourself."
