Indiana
New York Liberty decimate Indiana Fever, win 104-68
The Indiana Fever have not had it easy to start the season. Sunday night’s matchup with the New York Liberty marked their 11th game in 20 days, the previous ten giving them a 2-8 record and a whole, whole lot of scrutiny and media attention, much of it directed toward a player you may have heard of: Caitlin Clark.
Sunday night even marked a back-to-back for the Fever, 24 hours after securing their second win of the season, a game that was overshadowed by the reaction to a hard foul by Chennedy Carter on Clark.
The WNBA has retroactively assessed Chennedy Carter a flagrant 1 foul for her contact on Caitlin Clark
Carter was originally only given a foul away from the ball pic.twitter.com/TdC5BnobaV
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) June 2, 2024
Everything about their season — injuries, their subpar pay, the media circus around Clark and its inability to prevent itself from turning into said circus — has been exhausting.
But before they could enjoy four precious off days before their next game on Friday evening, they had to face the Libs at the Barclays Center. And the WNBA is not a league that prizes sympathy.
New York took the lead four seconds into the game after Jonquel Jones directed the opening tip-off to Breanna Stewart in the front-court, igniting a one-woman fast-break. That was it. With 39 minutes and 56 seconds of game to play, the Liberty scored the game-winning bucket, refusing to let the score approach even.
Sandy Brondello’s team had taken early double-digit leads in their last two victories as well, but unlike those games, the Libs didn’t take their foot off the gas pedal in quarters 2 and 3. Indiana’s Kelsey Mitchell and NaLyssa Smith, whose respective seasons have been choppy thus far, combined for 38 points and made some nice plays to cut their deficit from 21 points to 14, but their efforts were ultimately a speed-bump.
The Liberty were completely locked in on defense, and held Caitlin Clark to just three points, five assists, and three turnovers on 1-of-10 shooting. They switched pick-and-rolls, trapped them, hedged them, and everything in between for 40 minutes, with Jones executing whatever was asked of her…
Liberty are locked in with their PnR D right now after It being an issue the last couple games. Able to mix up coverages on the fly.
1: Betnijah directs a scram-switch after the initial action, TO.
2: Then an aggressive hedge forces a rushed pick-up from CC: pic.twitter.com/wuIGmbyvnP— Lucas Kaplan (@LucasKaplan_) June 2, 2024
Jones posted a monster 18/13/4/2/1 stat-line, but was merely the centerpiece of a defense that got contributions from everybody wearing sea foam. Betnijah Laney-Hamilton took the Clark assignment and aced it, while getting help from a flurry of limbs every time the ball entered the paint…
“I think it’s our job to help B out,” explained Jones. “She has a tough responsibility every night to guard the best perimeter players, and she does a great job of that. Teams are definitely going to try to do what they can to get her away from those players, to make the game a little bit easier for them … as much as she’s doing a great job, we have to make sure that we’re backing her up.”
New York recorded more blocks and steals than Indiana, but the turnovers were even at 13 apiece, and there was hardly a difference in transition offense. But Indiana just couldn’t get clean looks in the half-court while the Liberty stumbled into them by accident, ending the game shooting 57.6% from the floor to Indiana’s 37%,
Laney-Hamilton led the way with 20 points on a hyper-efficient 7-of-9 performance, while Sabrina Ionescu added 16/6/6 (though her turnover problems continued with four) and Stewart contributed a calm 13/6/5 on 5-of-11 shooting. The only starter who didn’t crack double-digits was Courtney Vandersloot, who returned after a one-game absence with back tightness, and she still put up nine points and seven assists on 4-of-4 shooting.
Nobody had more than 11 shot attempts, and yet, the Liberty recorded 30 assists on their 38 made baskets, passing up good looks at the rim for great ones…
Brondello described the team’s offensive philosophy after the game: “How do we get the best looks every single time? When we’re sharing it and playing selfless like that, that’s beautiful basketball. It’s fun to watch, it’s fun to play. But then, just making sure we have good inside-outside attack. I think that’s critical for us. We established B, we established JJ early in the game and that kind of opens up the outside.”
Their domination on Sunday wasn’t about any one player, and even the bench turned in their best performance of the season to date. They combined for 28 points — a season-high — despite Nyara Sabally’s absence with a back injury.
“I thought we had great production from the bench,” said Brondello. “We created for each other, I thought we played poised and we got two feet in the paint, we got some open looks near the end, too. It was fun to watch them play that way, and we’re getting there.”
Without Sabally to rely on, the Libs turned to Kennedy Burke in an extended role, and she delivered: ten points on 2-of-2 from three, in addition to three steals and three blocks.
“I felt like today, I had I had more time on the court, so I was able to get in the flow of everything,” said Burke of her performance.”
Along with Leonie Fiebich and Kayla Thornton, she was part of a trio of wings off the bench that kept the Liberty’s 5-out spacing principles flowing while bringing the length and defensive versatility the team envisioned in the preseason.
Burke credited the group’s success to “the trust that we have with each other. There were some lapses where it was a miscommunication, but I feel like throughout the season, it’s gonna get better, it’s gonna get stronger. We just got to keep building off each other and trusting each other.”
No, the Fever were not the most fearsome opponent, especially not on the second half of a back-to-back. But if the Liberty can keep building off this type of performance and indeed get stronger, as Burke predicts, the whole league has to watch out.
After two grind-it-out wins that had the Liberty talking about winning ugly, their Sunday night beatdown of the Fever was a two-hour celebration in front of a sold-out Barclays Center that opened up the entire second deck for Clark’s second trip to NYC.
And, if nothing else, it was a reminder to the 17,401 fans in attendance that New York can still put teams in the dirt.
Final score: New York Liberty 104, Indiana Fever 68
Commissioner’s Cup begins with a bang
Sunday marked the first day of Commissioner’s Cup play for the Liberty, who now sit in a tie with the still-undefeated Connecticut Sun in the Eastern Conference Cup standings.
As a reminder, each team will play the other five teams in its conference once. The team in each conference with the best record in those five games (with point differential as a tie-break) will advance to the championship game on June 25.
New York is the defending Cup champion after their win over the Las Vegas Aces last season, in which they took home the $500,000 prize pool. This season, they will be playing for Women Creating Change, an organization that would receive more money from the W based on how well the Libs do.
Next Up
The New York Liberty begin a three-game road trip on Tuesday, seeking revenge against the Chicago Sky, who handed them their first loss of the season on May 23. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. ET from the Windy City.
(The REPORTER) — The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) will hold a public hearing on Wednesday, June 10, regarding a proposed corridor improvement project on State Road 32 in Hamilton County.
The hearing will provide an opportunity for the public to interact with the project team, review the features of the proposed roundabout project, and provide official public comment. Project documents are available for review at improvetomove32.com.
The project area is between East Street in Westfield and River Road in Noblesville. The proposed project includes adding lanes to accommodate two lanes in each direction, removing all traffic signals within the project limits, and constructing roundabouts at the following intersections with SR 32:
- Carey Road/Grassy Branch Road
- Gunther Boulevard
- Shady Nook Road
- Moontown Road/Gray Road
- Pebble Brook Boulevard
- Hazel Dell Road/Little Chicago Road
- Mill Creek Road
The hearing will take place at Prairie Waters Event Center, 4180 Westfield Road, Westfield. Doors will open at 5 p.m. to allow the public to view displays and talk with the project team. A presentation will be given at 5:30 p.m., with a public comment session held directly after. INDOT is offering livestreams of all public meetings and hearings. You must register here in order to participate in the livestream. Livestream audience comments will only be accepted in written electronic form, not verbally. A recording of the livestream presentation will be posted on the project webpage and INDOT YouTube page after the hearing and will be available for at least 90 days.
All verbal statements recorded during the public hearing and all written comments submitted prior to, during and for a period of two weeks following the hearing date, will be evaluated, considered, and addressed in subsequent environmental documentation.
Written comments may be submitted within the comment period to Nick Batta, CMT, 8790 Purdue Road, Indianapolis, IN 46268; or sent via email to SR32HamiltonCounty@cmtengr.com.
INDOT respectfully requests comments be submitted by June 26.
A beloved tradition is drawing stitchers, shoppers, and curious newcomers across the region.
If you have ever walked into a quilt shop “just to look,” you already know how that story ends. One minute you are admiring a cheerful stack of fabric with names like sunflower, buttercream, and cardinal red, and the next you are seriously considering whether your house has room for a new table runner, a holiday wall hanging, and perhaps a life-changing bundle of fat quarters. Quilt shops have that effect. They are part treasure hunt, part therapy session, part color explosion, and in Southeastern Indiana, they are also some of the friendliest gathering places around.
That is especially true during the ALL INDIANA SHOP HOP, the statewide sewing and quilting event running through June 30, 2026.
The idea is delightfully simple: visit participating quilt shops, collect passport stamps, pick up thank-you gifts, and become eligible for prizes. The official event even describes it as a quilting version of a bar crawl, only with less late-night regret and more batting, bobbins, and beautiful fabric. There is even a youth passport for ages 8 to 17, which is a nice reminder that quilting is not just a pastime handed down from grandparents. It is also being discovered by a new generation who like making things by hand, repurposing fabric to help the environment, learning skills online, and sharing their creations proudly.
And really, quilting has everything going for it. It is practical, creative, social, and just a little bit magical.
A quilt can be a baby gift, a comfort during a hard season, a graduation present, a family heirloom, or simply a way to make a couch look much more put together than the people sitting on it. Quilters are surgeons with rotary cutters, artists with thread, and storytellers with fabric. They notice pattern, texture, memory, and meaning. Even non-quilters tend to fall under the spell. You do not need to know how to piece a block to appreciate the patience, skill, and imagination it takes to turn small shapes into something that warms both the room and the people in it.
That is one reason local quilt shops matter so much.
Yes, they sell fabric, books, notions, patterns, batting, and tools that can make a beginner feel both excited and slightly underqualified. But they also do something online shopping cannot: they welcome people in. Good quilt shops are places where somebody will help you match prints, explain what on earth a layer cake is, admire your progress, and gently steer you away from a fabric choice you may regret in broad daylight. They are equal parts classroom, clubhouse, and creative headquarters.
Southeastern Indiana is lucky to have several shops that make a Shop Hop route feel less like an errand list and more like a mini road trip with excellent scenery and even better conversation.
In Versailles, The Quilter’s Nook has become a creative quilting and sewing destination with classes, learning opportunities, and plenty of supplies and inspiration for anyone wanting to sharpen their skills or finally start that project they have been thinking about for two years. In Greensburg, Tree City Stitches is known for its premium fabrics, project kits, classes, and welcoming atmosphere, with plenty of samples on display to spark ideas before you even make it to the cutting counter.
In Vevay, Cardinal Quilts offers a deep fabric selection, quilting classes, and longarm services, making it the kind of place where serious quilters can stock up and newcomers can get helpful guidance without a trace of intimidation. And in Madison, L&L Yard Goods has been operating in the same location since 1986, offering quilting essentials, classes, and the sort of steady hometown presence that makes people come back year after year.
Together, these shops help keep quilting visible, vibrant, and local.
They also provide handmade quilts for community projects, children’s hospitals, veterans, and emergency services just like the early quilters did centuries ago.
So if your summer plans could use a little more color, a little more small-town charm,
and maybe a little more excuse to buy fabric you absolutely do not need but definitely deserve, the Shop Hop is calling. Bring a friend, bring your passport, and bring a willingness to be delighted by places where craftsmanship still matters and people still make beautiful things with their hands.
In Southeastern Indiana, quilting is more than a hobby.
It is history from the days of early pioneers, hospitality that warms you, creativity and community all stitched together one square at a time.
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