Fever fail to close out Liberty in the Garden

Indiana looked to win their first series in franchise history as the lower-seed. Indiana lost the lead in the final minute and the Liberty advance to the Eastern Conference Finals 77-74.

Indiana jumped out to a 26-21 lead at the end of the first quarter. But New York was relentless. The Liberty went on a 11 to 2 run to begin the second. Indiana led most of the game. Their biggest lead was eight early in the first quarter.

Center Janel McCarville did not dress for the game after spraining her ankle in shoot around earlier today. Instead, Kia Vaughn and Essence Carson. Vaughn averaged just two points per game and Carson averaged just under 4 points a game. But in this game, they scored 13 and 11 respectively.

Both teams shot it well from the field in the first half and Indiana made all but one free throw attempt. Turnovers were a problem early for the Liberty, including seven in the first half.

Katie Douglas was much improved tonight for the Fever. She went scoreless in game one at MSG but tonight, KT finished with 24 points.

It was imperative for Indiana to defend the 3-pt shot…and tonight they did. New York shot just 4 of 13 from beyond the arc.

Tamika Catchings once again had a solid all around game. She finished with 21 points, 6 rebounds and 3 steals. She had a terrific steal with seven minutes remaining in the game.

Have you ever seen someone more driven and perform on the grand stage. The passion is unquestionable. The look in her eyes are deadly. Former Pacers star Reggie Miller spoke yesterday at the Peyback Bowl and said she would shine…and that she did. Just like Miller, she dominated the infamous Garden, in front of an announced crowd of 16,682, a season record, though that seems a bit high.

With 1:16 remaining in the game, MVP-candidate Cappie Pondexter hit a huge layup and was fouled by Katie Douglas. That gave New York a two point lead and their first lead since early in the third. Pondextor, their clear leader, finished with a game-high 30 points, a Liberty record. Ebony Hoffman responded twenty seconds later with a layup of her own. Cappie responded with a tough fade-away from the right baseline with 28 seconds left and the Liberty led by two. Catchings missed a tough layup and then the Liberty couldn’t get the ball in, and we’re whistled for a five-second violation.

Catchings again drove inside and was hack but no foul was called. And that just about did it.

A tough finish to swallow. The refs missed a couple calls both ways that would have altered the finish. The home court advantage could have been the difference. A difficult no-call down the stretch ultimately was the difference. Indiana controlled their own destiny the last few regular season games, win and grab the top seed. The Fever played at the Garden four times this season, winning only once (coincidentally the only time I was there).

The Liberty limited the Fever to just 8 points in the fourth quarter after 26 in the first. Once again, Indiana did not finish a series on the road and the Liberty advance to the Eastern Conference Finals against the Atlanta Dream.

This veteran group had tremendous potential. They lost in the WNBA finals last season to the Phoenix Mercury but nine players returned with a championship in mind.

The Fever finished the season 21-13, but lost 5 of their last 6 games.

Another exciting and fun season…but it did not end to the delight of Fever players and fans.