Marina Mabrey turns to her family when she needs a lift.
In the midst of one of her worst shooting slumps, a video from her younger sister served as a reminder of the player she has always been.
“It was me and her playing when we were younger,” Mabrey said.
“I shot a three, and my mom was like, ‘No. Don’t shoot threes; they’re too far.’ I said, ‘No, I can make them!’ ’’
In the Sky’s 81-67 loss Saturday to the Liberty at Wintrust Arena, Mabrey took another step forward in regaining her rhythm from three-point range. She shot 4-for-7 from deep and had a team-high 21 points to go with 12 rebounds in 38 minutes.
The Sky shot 7-for-15 from three, while the Liberty went 11-for-36. Although the Sky were more efficient, their three-point production remains a concern.
“We’re very good in the paint,” Sky coach Teresa Weatherspoon said. “We’re very good in midrange. We don’t shoot as many threes as everybody else, so we try to do what our personnel is great at.
‘‘Everybody wants us to be like everybody else, but we want to be ourselves. We recognize how important three-point shooting is, and we do have people capable of knocking them down.”
Mabrey has been the Sky’s only consistent long-range option, but that could change soon.
Michaela Onyenwere went 2-for-2 from three and had 14 points off the bench. Weatherspoon thinks Onyenwere can provide an answer for the Sky’s three-point production issues.
“She took it without question,” Weatherspoon said. “She can knock those down, and it was big for us.”
Mabrey and Onyenwere were the only Sky players in double figures.
Angel Reese had eight points and 10 rebounds, bringing an end to her historic double-double streak at 15. Chennedy Carter, the Sky’s leading scorer, had seven points in 16 minutes.
After the game, Weatherspoon said Carter was fine in response to a question about her limited minutes.
The Sky are 12th in three-point shots (14.5) and makes (4.6) per game. They’re ninth in three-point percentage (31.4%).
The Liberty sit at the opposite end of the spectrum. They’re first in three-point shots (29.8) and makes (10.3) per game and fourth in percentage (34.5%).
That’s a 17.1-point differential on three-pointers per game. On Saturday, Sabrina Ionescu again led the Liberty with a game-high 28 points. Her success underscored another concerning aspect of the Sky’s game — their pick-and-roll defense.
“New York did a really good job of spreading us,” Weatherspoon said, “using their pick-and-roll situations, then kicking out and finding open three-point shooters.
‘‘We have to get better at being able to control their pick-and-roll situations and running three-point shooters off the arc.”
The Sky are operating with 10 available players, which means they can sign a player outright. They also could make a trade. As Weatherspoon continues to struggle finding minutes for Dana Evans and Brianna Turner, it could be an indication that they soon might be on the move.
When asked about what needs to be addressed with a roster addition, Weatherspoon remained vague.
“We still continue to speak about what is important for us as we move forward,” Weatherspoon said. “I’m always about the need. We’ll continue to have that conversation, then make a decision.”
