Sandy Brondello becomes Liberty’s all-time winningest coach

LOS ANGELES — Sandy Brondello became the Liberty’s all-time winningest coach Tuesday night when the Liberty beat the Sparks 105-97.

Brondello, whom the Liberty hired before the 2022 season, captured her 101st win of her New York career, surpassing Richie Adubato for sole possession of the top spot in the franchise’s record book.

Emma Meesseman’s fingerprints were all over the win. Meesseman finished with a season-high 24 points and had nine rebounds and four assists in only her fifth game with the Liberty.

The game was more of an offensive showcase between the two teams than a defensive clinic.

Tuesday was the Liberty’s highest-scoring game of the season and only the second time they reached 100 points.

All five Liberty starters finished in double-digit scoring.

Jonquel Jones tallied 21 points and 11 rebounds, and Leonie Fiebich contributed 20 points.

Meanwhile, the Sparks had four players finish with 16-plus points, with Kelsey Plum leading the team with 26 points, five rebounds and five assists.

After trailing by two at halftime, the Liberty built a nine-point lead and had some momentum in the third quarter.

They surrendered two bad turnovers that led to Sparks layups and a quick four points to shrink the margin.

It’s no secret that the Liberty are a team that likes to play with its food, so to speak.

But without Breanna Stewart, Kennedy Burke and Nyara Sabally, they don’t necessarily have the depth and fresh legs to get away with those antics as of late.

The Sparks got within three points early in the fourth before New York put the game away for good.

The Liberty can say the WNBA standings aren’t a priority. But it’s hard to ignore how tight the standings have become with a month left in the regular season.

With Tuesday’s win, the Liberty remain in second place in the standings, sitting six games behind the Lynx, who are the only team to have clinched a postseason berth.

But there’s only 1.5 games separating second place and fourth and three games separating fifth and ninth.

The top eight teams make the playoffs.

It’s a sprint to the finish for the Liberty, who are scheduled to play their 12 remaining regular-season games in 29 days.

New York will complete its final back-to-back of the season Wednesday in Las Vegas.