Sabrina Ionescu Erupts for 33 Points but Liberty Lose to Wings

The New York Liberty suffered their second straight loss to start the season, but Sabrina Ionescu showcased her talent in the 93-80 loss to the Dallas Wings.

The 2020 No. 1 draft pick shined with a game-high 33 points to go with seven rebounds and seven assists on 11-of-20 shooting.

She finished 6-of-10 from three-point range after going 0-of-8 from deep in her debut Saturday.

This production would have been notable even if it weren't just the second game of her professional career:

Ionescu is one of the most hyped rookies in WNBA history after an incredible collegiate career at Oregon. She was the first player in NCAA history with over 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds and 1,000 assists, totaling an NCAA-record 26 triple-doubles in the process.

She won the Wooden Award as the national player of the year in each of her last two seasons.

It brought a lot of expectations at the next level, although the first game wasn't quite as memorable. Ionescu had just 12 points on 4-of-17 shooting in an 87-71 loss to the Seattle Storm.

"I think there's a lot of expectation on me coming in and just producing the numbers I did in college," she said after the game, per Mechelle Voepel of ESPN. "But I definitely think there's going to be a lot of down and a lot of adversity I have to face in order to get there."

It took just one game to turn things around and show what she can do.

The Liberty now have to provide more support to finally get into the win column. New York plays its next game Friday against the Atlanta Dream.