NEW YORK -- The New York Liberty made a strong statement going into the All-Star break.

Shameka Christon scored eight straight points, including the go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:47 remaining, and the Liberty closed with a 26-9 run to beat the first-place Connecticut Sun 89-79 Thursday night.

"It was the last game before the All-Star break and we needed to get back on the right track," Christon said.

Christon finished with 14 points, Ann Wauters had a career-high 23 points and eight rebounds, and Becky Hammon added 20 points and eight assists for the Liberty, who had their highest scoring total in more than two years.

New York, coming off a 67-55 victory at Los Angeles on Tuesday, won its second straight after a three-game losing streak.

"Going into the break with two quality wins, that's two really good teams that we beat," Liberty coach Pat Coyle said. "It's a great scenario. With a quality win out in L.A. and a quality win tonight, I think we're beginning to understand that if we do the right things, good things will happen."

New York (7-7) scored 57 points in the second half, shooting 62 percent (18-for-29) from the field and 17-for-20 on free throws. The Liberty finished 55 percent from the field (33-for-60) and moved into a three-way tie for second place in the Eastern Conference, 4½ games behind Connecticut.

"To give up 57 points in a half is embarrassing," Sun coach Mike Thibault said. "It's unacceptable. We didn't stop anybody when we needed to. I was disappointed in our defense in the second half. We broke down everywhere. We gave up penetration. Some turnovers turned into shots for them. They shot 55 percent."

Lindsay Whalen scored a career-high 24 points, and Taj McWilliams-Franklin had 13 points and eight rebounds for the Sun (12-3).

McWilliams-Franklin's three-point play gave Connecticut a 70-63 lead with 5:52 remaining, but New York rallied with nine straight points and took a 72-70 lead on Christon's three-point play with 3:20 left.

Just 20 seconds earlier, Christon rebounded her own missed 3-point shot and scored on a putback.

"Just had a lot of energy and a lot of desire," Christon said.

Nykesha Sales, who had 10 points, hit a 3-pointer to regain the advantage for Connecticut, but Christon's 3 gave the Liberty the lead for good.

New York made 14 of 15 free throws over the last 1:42 to snap the Sun's four-game winning streak. The Liberty had their highest output since a 90-64 win against the Sun on July 1, 2003.

McWilliams-Franklin fouled out with 48 seconds remaining, and then was hit with a technical as she sauntered down the court toward the Connecticut bench and removed her jersey.

"I think they got a little rattled," Christon said. "Some mistakes were made, but it happens."

Coyle and Thibault were also called for techinals in the second half.

"We just broke down," Whalen said. "We had some turnovers. They hit some tough shots. We got some technicals and they got some momentum."

The Sun shot 49 percent (30-of-61).

"It's an awful feeling going into the break," Thibault said. "I've maintained all along they're a very good team, particularly on the offensive end and we helped them look that way tonight."

Connecticut led 38-32 at halftime and pushed its advantage to eight on McWilliams-Franklin's jumper to open the second half.

The Sun opened the game with a 6-0 run over the first two minutes, and the teams mostly traded baskets for the next nine minutes. The Liberty then went on 9-4 run, capped by Hammon's free throw, to take a 21-20 lead with 7:11 remaining in the half.

After Elena Baranova's 3-pointer tied the game at 28 for New York with just over five minutes remaining, Connecticut went ahead on Whalen's layup and Margo Dydek's running jumper with 3:45 left.