Betnijah Laney scored the go-ahead basket with 17.6 seconds to play and forced a turnover on the ensuing possession to lift the New York Liberty to an 83-79 victory over the Seattle Storm on Wednesday.
Laney and Rebecca Allen each finished with 17 points for the Liberty (11-12), who outscored Seattle by a 21-7 margin in the fourth quarter to snap a three-game losing run while the Storm (16-7), have lost two in a row after winning the Commissioner's Cup.
Jewell Loyd notched a career high-tying 35 points, with 21 of them coming in the third quarter. In fact, Loyd outscored the Liberty by one point in the third quarter before being held without a point in the fourth as Liberty rallied for the victory.
Katie Lou Samuelson scored 15 points for the Storm, who played without former WNBA MVP Breanna Stewart and 12-time All-Star Sue Bird for the second straight game due to load management.
Loyd had scored 15 of Seattle's first 17 points in the third quarter to give her team a 58-49 lead, sinking a 3-pointer to start the half and appearing to make two more from beyond the arc to cap the surge, although the officials ruled she had a toe on the line on her last attempt.
Undaunted, Loyd drained another 3-pointer and added a 10-foot jumper with 1:50 to play to extend the Storm's lead to 71-57.
Former Storm player Sami Whitcomb drained a 3-pointer to stake New York to a 17-10 lead with 3:53 remaining in the first quarter. Seattle answered by scoring 14 of the final 18 points of the quarter, highlighted by Samuelson sinking a 3-pointer with 37.4 seconds to play.
New York responded to Loyd's dominant period with a spirited fourth-quarter surge, with Allen making her fifth 3-pointer of the night and former Storm player Natasha Howard hitting a lay-up to tie the game at 79-79 with 1:10 to play.
Laney banked home a 17-foot jumper to put the Liberty ahead before stealing the ball from Mercedes Russell on the ensuing possession before New York sealed the win at the free throw line.
