Washington, DC (SportsNetwork.com) - Plenette Pierson scored 20 points off the bench and the New York Liberty defeated the Washington Mystics, 73-61, on Saturday.
Swin Cash netted seven of her 12 points in the third quarter and Cappie Pondexter supplied eight points and five assists for the Liberty, who snapped a three-game skid.
New York will conclude its season on Sunday against Indiana and will miss the postseason for a second straight year.
Ivory Latta paced the Mystics with 15 points, Emma Meesseman had eight points and 12 rebounds and Tianna Hawkins scored 11 points for Washington, which entered the game seeking home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs.
New York led 19-17 after the opening stanza and Pondexter's pullup jumper ignited a 10-2 burst to end the second quarter, giving the Liberty a 45-29 advantage heading into the break.
Cash's turnaround fadeaway shot staked the Liberty to a 56-36 advantage with under four minutes to play in the third quarter. Tayler Hill and Latta hit consecutive treys with under two minutes to play in the period, however, to get the Mystics within 60-46 going into the fourth.
New York's lead did not dip below 11 points the rest of the way, though.