WASHINGTON (AP) -- Trailing by nine points with about nine minutes remaining, a loss to last place Washington could have dealt a serious blow to the New York Liberty's playoff chances. <\/p>\n
However, thanks to Cappie Pondexter, Nicole Powell and some stifling defense, the Liberty remain in control of their future. <\/p>\n
Pondexter had 30 points, including 10 in the fourth quarter, and 11 rebounds as the Liberty rallied to beat the Mystics 75-68. <\/p>\n
''Defense is our key,'' Liberty coach John Whisenant said. ''And Cappie. She's been awesome. She's our MVP and the most important player to her team of anybody in the league.'' <\/p>\n
Powell scored 10 of her 18 points in the fourth quarter as well and Essence Carson added 15 points as New York (14-17) won its third straight. <\/p>\n
The Liberty retained a one game lead over Chicago for the fourth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Sky beat Phoenix 86-55. <\/p>\n
Jasmine Thomas scored 16 points (on 7-of-11 shooting) and Monique Currie had 12 to lead the Washington (5-27), which has lost 11 straight. <\/p>\n
''I think we played a tough game. We fought through until the end,'' Currie said. ''They executed better than we did. They made some tough shots, some big shots.'' <\/p>\n
After Washington scored the first four points of the fourth quarter to take a 56-49 lead, Pondexter scored the first six of an 8-0 run by the Liberty. The Mystics pushed the lead to 63-58 with 4:36 left and New York called timeout. <\/p>\n
''When it looked like they could take over the game with about four minutes left, we had a time out, talked about it, and regrouped,'' Pondexter said. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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\nLiberty rally for 75-68 win over Mystics<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"