With the regular season in the books, it’s time to take a look at the ‘second season’. The NY Liberty statistical profile follows with the accent on possessions and the Four Factors.

Possessions Offensive Efficiency

NY Liberty 2710 92

Opponents 2688 98

The average possessions for the Liberty and opposition was 80 per game. The OE (offensive efficiency) should not come as a big surprise. The Liberty had a -6 OE margin (offense minus defense). Not a big shock given they were a 15-19 team during the regular season.

The Four Factors:

Thought the offensive rebounding percentage would show New York at a higher disadvantage. Liberty seemed to struggle all year on the glass. Field goal marks were extremely close. A disturbing trend was the free throw numbers. Opponents were getting to the line far more frequently than the Liberty. You can chalk that up to the rebounding, as we noted a Liberty Achilles heel. Thought the free throw difference might be due to fouling late to get back in the game. A closer look saw the Liberty lose only five games by 10 or less points. So, late game fouling was not something solely responsible for the opposition making more trips to the charity stripe.

The turnover department saw the offense far too guilty of the loss of possession while the defense could not force enough on their end.

What is next? A best of three with Connecticut. The Sun captured the division with a 25-9 record. They also defeated New York in four of the five regular season contests. In a best of three though, decided underdogs can turn the tables. Statistical deficiencies aside, John Whisenant’s club has been resilient. They began the season 0-5, weathered a succession of injuries, yet kept fighting back and competing. Through it all, the Liberty staff and players hoped to get that second season. They have it and an opportunity to make the most of it awaits.