http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/24/sports/basketball/new-york-liberty-tina-charles-epiphanny-prince.html 2016-09-24 03:06:36 Liberty Players’ Childhood Bond Outlasts the Story of Their Rivalry Before they were teammates, Tina Charles and Epiphanny Prince were routinely portrayed as New York City foes as they faced off for the top two high school teams in the nation. === Tina Charles and Epiphanny Prince will take the court Saturday night for the Liberty with their season on the line, in a single-elimination second-round playoff game against the Phoenix Mercury at Madison Square Garden. Charles, a Queens native, and Prince, from Brooklyn, are familiar with playing for high stakes at the Garden. Ten years ago, before they were teammates, Charles and Prince were routinely portrayed as rivals battling for girls’ high school basketball superiority. “For us, we didn’t even think about it like that,” Prince said. “We hung out most of the time after games.” Charles added: “I think for our schools, that was a big rivalry. We both just wanted each other to be better.” Charles and Prince said they had first met when they were in middle school, playing at a tournament in Harlem hosted by the former Knicks guard Rod Strickland. After high school, they continued to be on opposite sides — Charles at Connecticut and Prince playing for Rutgers — but they still motivated each other. “It’s a great feeling when you have someone that’s going to hold you accountable, give you constructive criticism and wants you to be better,” Charles said, “and that’s what Piph has been in my life.” The intensity of those high school games occasionally floods back. On Jan. 15, 2006 It was first time the two schools had met during the regular season. In four of the previous six years, they had faced off in the New York State Federation Tournament of Champions. The game matched the preceding hype. “Forget girls, forget boys — they were classic high school games,” Christ the King Coach Bob Mackey said in a recent phone interview. “It was a great environment for high school basketball. I thought it was great for the girls’ game. I think a lot of little kids there who saw the game wanted to play basketball then.” The game was tied at 63-63 in the final minute, when Prince, who already had 39 points, drove through the lane for a go-ahead basket. But she was stifled by Charles, who forced a held ball. That turned possession back to Christ the King, and almost everyone in attendance knew who would be taking the final shot. “We figured they’d have five people on her,” Mackey said of Charles. “For the life of me, I didn’t think she’d have a snowball’s chance in hell of getting open.” After receiving an entry pass near the elbow Displaying the instinct and tenacity that would define her career, Charles bolted toward the paint to snag the offensive rebound with one hand and released a short fadeaway that swished through as time expired. When asked Friday if the final result ever comes up in conversation, Prince said, “Tina does it all the time.” “I talk about it all the time because we won,” Charles said. “If I beat her in a shooting drill, she’s going 10 years back to remind me,” Prince added. In the ensuing weeks, Charles and Christ the King would go undefeated through the regular season, but Prince grabbed back the spotlight. Two weeks after the loss to Christ the King, Through the rigmarole, Charles and Prince remained close. They On Friday, Prince was more willing to reflect on her high school battles with Charles. “It was great to have everyone in the city come out and support,” Prince said. “We drew big crowds. It was an amazing atmosphere.” Through all of their individual successes, Charles and Prince always yearned to become teammates. In 2014, Charles was acquired by the Liberty from the Connecticut Sun. After that season, she said, she approached the Liberty’s management and Coach Bill Laimbeer and relayed the message: “We need Epiphanny.” Charles became like a college recruiter, selling Prince on the on-court possibilities. Prince discussed the situation with her agent, and before the 2015 season, the Liberty swung a deal, trading Cappie Pondexter for Prince. This season, Prince missed the first 26 games as she recovered from a knee injury sustained last November while playing with the Russian club Dynamo Kursk. Although Prince is still working herself back into the lineup, she remains one of the best scorers in the league. Charles, averaging 21.5 points and 9.9 rebounds, became just the third player to finish the regular season leading the W.N.B.A. in both categories. Both players’ performances on the Garden floor Saturday will be crucial in the Liberty’s quest for their first championship. Charles and Prince relish the challenge. “I think it’s a dream come true for the both of us as far as where we came from growing up in the city, both growing up playing in high school at the Garden,” Charles said. “We definitely look back, but we also want to look forward as to how many possible championships can we bring to this organization. How can we play until retirement together? All that stuff, being childhood friends, it definitely resonates with us.”