New York, NY (SportsNetwork.com) - Tina Charles racked up a season-high 28 points and pulled down 14 rebounds in a monster effort that carried the New York Liberty to a 90-74 win over the Tulsa Shock Tuesday at Madison Square Garden.
Cappie Pondexter added 21 points and Anna Cruz had 17 on 7-of-7 shooting in a game the Liberty never trailed at any stage.
Charles made her presence felt right from the opening tip, making good on all six first-quarter field goal attempts while tallying 13 points as New York built a 23-18 edge after one period.
The Shock trailed by just one with under 4 1/2 minutes left in the first half, but were outscored by a 16-6 margin over the rest of the second quarter. Cruz had seven points during the run, which staked the Liberty to a 46-35 advantage at the break.
Behind 16 third-quarter points from Skylar Diggins, Tulsa closed within 64-58 entering the fourth before the Liberty opened the final frame with an 8-0 surge to put the game out of reach.
Diggins finished with 23 points and Glory Johnson had 13 points and 11 rebounds in the loss, the Shock's third in a row.
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