Liberty fall to Dream with starters playing limited minutes in first-round playoff preview

The Liberty’s first-round opponent is set, yet New York got an alarming preview Thursday night of the upcoming series.

Having already secured the No. 1 playoff seed for the first time since 2015, there was nothing at stake for the Liberty.

But the Dream locked in their spot in the playoffs by beating New York, 78-67, at Barclays Center — three days before they face off in the postseason.

It served as a study of sorts for the Liberty for what awaits when the postseason begins Sunday.

It was also a study for Atlanta given the league-leading Liberty can falter if pushed.

Entering Thursday’s game, the Liberty held a 3-0 record over the Dream this season and, while coach Sandy Brondello aimed not to “overplay” her starters to save their energy for the playoffs, the Liberty couldn’t find their shots or limit turnovers enough to earn a victory.

The Dream got the job done without help from the Mystics or Sky, with whom they’re locked in a tight race for the eighth and final playoff spot.

The playoff format also puts New York up against a familiar face — Tina Charles — and it’s what the former Liberty player of six seasons called a “perfect storm.”

The Dream star, who became the WNBA’s all-time rebound leader with her third board of the game, recorded a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

The Dream came out strong, putting up a front that forced the Liberty to shoot a dismal 40 percent and commit 17 frustrating turnovers that the Dream turned into 19 points.

Bad passes, poor decisions, double dribbles, and travels punctuated the first half and it snowballed into the second half before the Liberty made the decision to play it safe, pulling Breanna Stewart after the first half and limiting minutes for the starters and Leonie Fiebich.

Stewart led the Liberty with 16 points across 16 minutes — a Liberty decision to keep their star rested and avoid injury before the postseason.

Betnijah Laney-Hamilton added nine points and Nyara Sabally got a lot of reps in Stewart’s absence, scoring 14 points to go along with two steals and four rebounds.

Remaining starters Sabrina Ionescu, Jonquel Jones, and Courtney Vandersloot scored 10 points collectively on a brutal shooting night.

Atlanta followed suit, sitting Charles after she played the first five minutes of the third quarter.

The Dream was led by Naz Hillmon and Rhyne Howard, who each scored 13 points.

Atlanta led by as many as 14 points in the first half and the Liberty only remained in contention because of Stewart.

In the first half, the remainder of the starters besides Stewart and Laney-Hamilton had two points or fewer.

Some new life sprung from the Liberty in the fourth quarter thanks to rookies Marquesha Davis and Jaylyn Sherrod, along with Sabally, who pulled the Liberty to within eight points against Atlanta’s reserves with under two minutes remaining.

Atlanta managed to keep the Liberty bench at bay.

Davis and Sherrod scored 12 points collectively while Sherrod added a steal.

The Dream controlled the paint for the entire game, scoring 46 of their points inside against the Liberty’s 24.

They earned their playoff spot and led by as many as 20 points.