Time is running out for the Liberty to make things right this season

"This is obviously a learning opportunity, but we're kind of running out of opportunities for growth at this point," forward Breanna Stewart said. "We need to just actually be better.

"I think that with this team, I believe that we can do anything that we put our minds to," Stewart continued. "We have that in the locker room, that a sense of urgency of what we're doing. Today was huge for seeding implications and things like that. But, aside from that, We just want the game to feel better, we want to play better. We want to be peaking, and today wasn't a good showing of that."

Injuries, of course, have defined the Liberty's first postseason championship defense but New York had mostly a full contingent on hand on Saturday, missing only Ionescu and long-absent fellow Oregon alumna Nyara Sabally. 

The respective returns of Natasha Cloud and Jonquel Jones from brief departures were not enough to contain Phoenix, which embarked on a 35-15 run over the last 14-plus minutes to seal the desert deal.

The frustrating fact of the matter is that the Liberty is fully aware that the truly painful happenings are of their own doing: on Saturday, for example, the Liberty let up 39 points through either second chance opportunities or tallies off turnovers, both of which have been particularly prevalent as they seek to regain lost ground.

Hope even broke through for New York to remind them of just how simple the path to victory can be to traverse: the Liberty won Saturday's second quarter by three to create a slim yet convincing halftime lead. The lack of turnovers and second chances (losing three and letting up one) allowed the Liberty to generate some long-sought continuity and flow, personified by some marksmanship from the masked Cloud, who heralded her return with a 3-of-5 period output headlined by a pair of triples.

But the momentum wasn't to last: Phoenix's extra possessions returned in the second half, enough to expand the game and derail any chance the Liberty had at getting back in the contest. The frustration was on particular display through the sloppiest of errors, namely shot clock violations and passes that sailed out of bounds or into Phoenix hands. The Liberty was charged with six such infractions, in the second half, stifling its own momentum on the comeback trail repeatedly.

"I think what was said is like, it's not good enough. It's not going to cut it. any of the things that we've done today, and honestly, for a while, it's not going to get us to where we want to be," Stewart said of the postgame conversations. "This is not a championship level basketball at this point and everybody needs to recognize that and understand that. We need to get there, and that starts with the mindset and then putting it onto the court.

"They were very aggressive on at both sides of the boards, defensively, offensively, with their attack. [Alyssa Thomas] could do whatever she wanted. So we have to do better there," head coach Sandy Brondello said. "We're not where we need to be, but that's it. We just, got to hang in there and then work this [stuff] out. We know what we're capable of, and that's what we have to focus on."

There's still a fleeting chance for New York to find that desired momentum, even if opening the postseason on the road still becomes an increasingly looming reality: a late three-game road trip will move onto Golden State and Seattle this week, providing tests against teams whose playoff fates are less assured in more ways than one.

Unable to rely on health at this point, New York will look to use the time to regain control over the proverbial controllables, a grip that was severely weakened by Saturday's second half no-show.

"I think we definitely were not playing our best," said forward Emma Meesseman, scorer of a team-best 17 points on Saturday. "[But] that's kind of a good thing, knowing that we can do much, much better. We just kind of [have to] work on ourselves, step by step. We still have some games left in the regular season, so I think we have to focus on that more than only just watching Phoenix as a possible [first-round opponent]."