Sabrina Ionescu shoulders blame as Liberty face elimination in Game 3

ATLANTA — Sabrina Ionescu felt the weight of the Liberty’s bewildering overtime loss Wednesday night. Afterward, she owned up to her personal shortcomings, telling the team, “It was my fault.”  Join Post Sports+ for exciting subscriber-only features, including real-time texting with Madeline Kenney about all things Liberty and WNBA.“This loss is on me,” Ionescu said.

“I got to take it on the chin and I got to be better.” She’ll have a chance to do just that when the Liberty return home Friday for Game 3 of the WNBA semifinals against the Atlanta Dream with their season on the brink. The Dream won the first two games, including Wednesday’s 101-98 overtime thriller that left New York one loss away from elimination. No WNBA team has ever come back from an 0-2 deficit in a best-of-five playoff series. The Liberty would like to think they could be the first and vowed to chip away at the mountain one game at a time. “The mentality is just that it’s not over,” Ionescu said. While there’s plenty of blame to go around for the Liberty’s loss — including the coaching staff’s rookie mistake and the team’s defensive lapses, among others — this is a defining moment for Ionescu, who’s weathered one of her most tumultuous seasons yet. Ionescu missed the start of the season because of an injured left foot and has been dealing with a nagging back issue.She’s experienced moments of brilliance as well as stretches when her shot hasn’t been there and possessions she would like back all while carrying the weight of expectations heavier than rain-soaked Timberlands. Wednesday was just the latest test of Ionescu’s resolve. While teammates delivered big shots when the Liberty needed them most, Ionescu, who had 27 points on 50 percent shooting in Game 1, struggled to find the same rhythm. Her confidence took a hit.

And when the game slipped away in overtime, she was left to reckon with the moments she wished she could have back.�...