Entering Thursday, the WNBA record for most 3s in a game was 18, which had been done six times, most recently by the Liberty themselves last season. Against the Sky, they one-upped themselves and made 19 3s to set the league's new single-game record.

It really was. The defending champion Liberty set a WNBA record with 19 3-pointers (in just 34 attempts) and shot 55.2 percent for the game in, yes, a 99-74 victory in the Sky’s home opener at Wintrust Arena. Chicago did have a plan, Vandersloot said, but you know what Mike Tyson used to say about those.

It’s also believed that the defending champions are the highest-valued women’s sports franchise in the world. The Chelsea women’s soccer team recently sold equity at a reported $326 million valuation. The WNBA’s Dallas Wings previously brought on investors at a $208 million valuation.