Pierson calls Liberty loss 'terrible'

NEWARK -- Plenette Pierson called it as she saw it, and what she saw was not pretty as the Liberty lost to the Minnesota Lynx, 86-68, Sunday afternoon at the Prudential Center.

"That was a terrible game," said Pierson, who had 17 points and eight rebounds in the Liberty's second-worst loss of the season.

Minnesota (25-7) took an early lead behind 11 first-quarter points from former UConn star Maya Moore, who had 19 points and six rebounds and was one of five Minnesota players to score in double figures.

The Liberty (18-14) shot 1-for-19 in the third quarter. Cappie Pondexter was 0-for-9 from the field, with all nine of her points coming from the free-throw line.

Pondexter sprained her left ankle against Chicago Aug. 30 but was unwilling to pin her poor performance on her injury.

"I'm not making excuses," she said. "I'm fighting through it. I'm going to do as much as I can. I'm trying to get healthy, doing treatment, but it was just one of those nights. I think I should have attacked more, earlier instead of later. Could be because I was thinking about my ankle, but I don't know."

The Liberty, which has clinched a playoff spot and is tied with Atlanta for third place in the Eastern Conference, will host first-place Indiana (20-11) on Friday and play at Connecticut (20-12) on Sunday.

Pierson thinks the lopsided defeat will reinvigorate the Liberty as the regular season draws to a close.

"I'd rather get blown out than to lose by one," Pierson said. " 'One' is that one possession that you didn't get that rebound. 'One' is that one layup you missed.

"This just adds fuel to the fire when you get beat by a large margin. We know the caliber of team that we have, and we shouldn't get blown out like this."