Liberty defeat Storm

NEW YORK – Tina Charles scored 29 points and the New York Liberty pulled away in the third quarter and beat the Seattle Storm 78-62 on Sunday for their fourth straight home victory.

Up 36-35 at the half, the Liberty outscored the Storm 24-9 in the third quarter.

Epiphanny Prince and Essence Carson each scored 11 points for the Liberty. Candice Wiggins added 10.

Seattle’s Sue Bird, the first pick of the 2002 draft, was 3 of 7 from beyond the arc to score 14 points, becoming the first player in WNBA history to score 5,000 points and amass 2,000 assists.

The Liberty inducted former star Becky Hammon into the franchise’s Ring of Honor at halftime. Hammon joined the San Antonio Spurs last year as the first full-time paid female assistant coach in the NBA and coached the Spurs to a summer league title last month.

Hammon was presented with flowers, a commemorative ring and a performance art painting created during the ceremony.