Stewart, Ionescu lead Liberty to Game 1 win over Aces in WNBA semifinals

Breanna Stewart scored 34 points and Sabrina Ionescu had 21 to help the New York Liberty beat the visiting Las Vegas Aces 87-77 on Sunday in Game 1 of their semifinals series.

Jonquel Jones added 13 points and 12 rebounds for the Liberty. Game 2 of the best-of-5 matchup is Tuesday night in New York.

Kelsey Plum scored 24 points and A'ja Wilson added 21 for the Aces.

This was a rematch of last season's WNBA Finals that the Aces won in four games, including clinching the championship in New York. The Liberty said they've had a scar from that loss and have used it as motivation all season long. New York had the best record in the league and earned the top seed in the playoffs.

Last season the Aces were the No. 1 seed, so New York had to go there for the opening two games of the Finals. The Liberty returned home down 0-2 and never could recover.

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