Liberty Earns a Trip to the Finals : Women’s basketball: Robinson’s outside shooting leads to 69-54 victory over Sting.

NEW YORK â€”  Crystal Robinson picked a good night to show why she’s the New York Liberty’s top three-point shooter.

Robinson made four of five from behind the arc to finish with 18 points and helped advance the Liberty to the WNBA finals with a 69-54 victory over the Charlotte Sting on Monday night.

“She’s as good a shooter as I’ve ever had,� New York Coach Richie Adubato said. “And I’ve had some great shooters. I’m talking about Mark Price, Derek Harper, some great shooters.�

Robinson went seven for eight from the field as the Liberty clinched the Eastern Conference title in the decisive game of the best-of-three series against the Sting.

New York advanced to the WNBA finals beginning Thursday against the Houston Comets, who have won both league championships. The Comets, who beat the Liberty in the 1997 finals, defeated the Sparks, 72-62, Monday night.

Robinson’s three-pointer, her fourth of the night, gave New York a 65-51 lead with just over a minute left and ignited the Madison Square Garden crowd of 12,929.

“I had to take the shot,� Robinson said. “We didn’t want to play a close game. We wanted to get a lead and keep it throughout the whole game so we didn’t feel that kind of pressure. They were going in tonight, thankfully, for me.�

New York, which shot 54%, got 13 points from Vickie Johnson and 10 points apiece from Tamika Whitmore and Sophia Witherspoon.

Andrea Stinson, the only Sting player in double figures, had 24 points on 10-for-19 shooting. But the Sting shot only 37% and were outrebounded, 32-20.