Ionescu scores 24, Thornton 20 and Liberty close out Mystics 90-79

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NEW YORK (AP) — Sabrina Ionescu scored 24 points, Kayla Thornton added 20 and the New York Liberty used a late scoring run to defeat the Washington Mystics 90-79 on Friday night.

Breanna Stewart had 18 points, 15 rebounds and five assists and Jonquel Jones scored 16 for the Liberty (6-2). Every New York starter played at least 30 minutes and they combined to score 86 points.

The Mystics led twice in the game — both times in the fourth quarter. Aaliyah Edwards made it 75-74 for the Mystics at the five-minute mark of the fourth. Soon after, the Mystics were assessed a technical foul for delay of game and Breanna Stewart made two free throws to give New York the lead for good.

Washington went 2 1/2 minutes without scoring, New York added a couple of 3-pointers and the Liberty made six free throws in the final 90 seconds to seal it.

Ariel Atkins scored 15 points, Shakira Austin 12, Myisha Hines-Allen 11 and Jade Melbourne also had 11 for Washington (0-8).

A 3-pointer by Thornton gave the Liberty their largest lead of the third quarter — 64-56 with about 4 minutes to go. Atkins then hit a 3 and later made one of two free throws to make it 64-60.

The Mystics got within 64-62 before Jones hit a 3-pointer for New York, but Washington's Julie Vanloo hit a 3 with five seconds left to make it 70-67 heading to the final period.

The Liberty led 46-32 with about 3 minutes left in the first half before a 3-pointer from Hines-Allen started an 8-0 run for the Mystics. Hines-Allen followed her 3 with a step-up layup and Vanloo added a 3-pointer to make it 46-40.

Hines-Allen made two free throws with 17 seconds left to get Washington within 49-45 at halftime. She had nine points, four rebounds and two assists off the bench in the first half.

The Liberty shot 11 of 19 from the field and scored 32 points in the first quarter. Ionescu scored 15 points and made three 3-pointers in the period.

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AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball