The New York Liberty were in trouble.
Midway through the third quarter, one of the best shooting teams of all time was shooting 27.9% from the field and was 0-11 from three-point range.
The decisive game in the 2024 WNBA Finals was a rock fight, and the Liberty were losing 38-33 to the Minnesota Lynx. According to ESPN Analytics, the Liberty only had a 33% win probability at that moment.
Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello was desperate. She was looking for someone to provide a spark.
Anyone.
Enter Nyara Sabally
An incredible seven players played at least 39 minutes in the overtime thriller. Liberty center Jonquel Jones was one of them. Backup center Nyara Sabally checked in for Jones for three minutes in the first quarter, but that was it. Jones ended up playing 42 minutes – topping her season-high 38 minutes in the Game 1 overtime loss to the Lynx.
Brondello needed a spark. Because the Liberty were inept from three, putting two posts on the floor together couldn’t make it worse. So she did something she rarely did all season. She had Sabally check into the game with 4:38 left in the third quarter for someone other than Jones.
Sabally and Jones only played together for 62 minutes this season (according to stats.wnba.com). Sabally joined Jones, Leonie Fiebich, Breanna Stewart, and Sabrina Ionescu in the lineup. That combination played exactly zero minutes together during the 2024 season.
Zero.
Sandy Brondello has turned to a lineup she has NOT ever played before…
Ionescu, Sabally, Jones, Stewart and Fiebich have played ZERO combined minutes together in the regular season and postseason. Emergency glass has been broken, but it appears to be working
— Ben Pickman (@benpickman) October 21, 2024
The Lynx immediately went after Sabally. Kayla McBride called for a high ball screen from Dorka Juhász, who was guarded by Sabally. Instead of switching, Sabally hedged out at McBride momentarily as Ionescu navigated around the screen. Sabally then recovered back to a rolling Juhász in time to take away any easy basket.
McBride was forced into a contested three-pointer, and the Liberty were going the other way.
The Liberty’s first offensive possession with their new lineup was not impressive. The Lynx locked up the Liberty’s ability to move the ball by switching everything. The possession came to a halt. With the shot clock winding down, Stewart dumped the ball into Jones who was posting up Juhász.
Juhász gambled for a steal, and Jones finished with contact from the help-side defender for the basket and the foul. The crowd erupted.
Jones made the free throw. The lead was cut to two.
After a Jones foul, the Lynx inbounded the ball to Juhász. Sabally was putting immense ball pressure on Juhász – daring her to drive. Instead, she tried to hand it off to Natisha Hiedeman. But Leonie Fiebich cut her off and stole the ball. A quick handoff to Ionescu and a lob over the top to a streaking Sabally ended with an easy layup and a tie game.
The crowd was ignited.
The next possession saw McBride get open on a blown switch between Stewart and Ionescu. McBride, one of the deadliest sharpshooters in the WNBA, lined up an easy three-point shot.
While the Liberty shot 2-for-23 (8.7%) from three, the Lynx weren’t much better. They finished 3-for-19 (15.8%), and McBride was uncharacteristically 1-for-6. McBride’s shot clanged off the back of the rim.
Sabally was there to collect the rebound.
A double drag screen was set for Ionescu. Jones, the first screener, popped to the slot. Sabally, the second screener, forced the defender over the top of the screen and rolled to the rim. Momentarily double-teamed, Ionescu threw a nifty bounce pass for an easy basket.
Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve was already on the floor calling for a timeout before the ball even hit the floor.
The crowd exploded.
In 91 seconds, the Liberty went on a 7-0 run with a lineup that had never played together. And it was led by their two centers who combined for all seven points. The Liberty’s win probability jumped to 63.4% after the run.
Lynx Claw Back
Cheryl Reeve is a master of sets after timeouts (commonly referred to as ATOs). She subbed in Courtney Williams and Alanna Smith, and the Lynx went into a spread high ball screen at the top with Williams and Napheesa Collier. Williams broke down Ionescu and got to the basket for an uncontested layup.
The Liberty’s newfound lineup displayed its inexperience as Jones kicked out to Sabally on the perimeter. Unfortunately for Jones, Sabally was cutting to the basket and the ball trickled out of bounds for a turnover.
Another series of high ball screens for Williams resulted in a good look from her patented mid-range spot. The ball rattled around the rim but popped out.
Williams had one of the most miserable games of her career. She finished with four points on 2-of-14 shooting and had five turnovers. She missed the first three Lynx shots in overtime. The Lynx were down five when she was subbed out for Hiedeman with just under three minutes left. They would never recover.
With the score tied, the Liberty were trying to isolate Stewart inside. Smith sagged off Sabally to help, and Sabally found herself with the ball on the left wing and room to operate. She put her head down, absorbed a collision from Smith at the elbow, spun, and drew the foul on the finish.
She converted on both free throws to give the Liberty the lead.
The Liberty responded with their best possession of the second half. Collier finished a layup after nine passes between four players. The spacing, movement, and unselfishness that defined the Lynx’s season were on full display.
Collier capped off one of the most prolific playoff runs in WNBA history with 22 points and seven rebounds. Although she attempted 23 shots, she didn’t shoot a free throw (much to the dismay of her head coach). She played 44 minutes before fouling out with a minute left in overtime. She averaged an extraordinary 40.6 minutes per game in the Finals.
Napheesa Collier’s Playoff Résumé:
✨ Most points in a single postseason
✨ Most points in a playoff game (tied)
✨ Most steals in a WNBA Finals series
✨ Most stocks (steals + blocks) in a single postseason
✨ Only player in WNBA playoff history to average 40 points per game in… pic.twitter.com/Rn8NKZHYlr— I talk hoops 🏀 (@trendyhoopstars) October 21, 2024
McBride ran through a Sabally ball screen on the other end and was called for a foul. The Liberty were in the bonus, and Sabally went 1-for-2 from the line. It was the one flaw she had in the third quarter.
Kayla Thornton Energy
Another highly uncommon lineup occurred when Kayla Thornton checked in for Fiebich with 1:25 left in the third quarter. Thornton was averaging only 9.3 minutes in the Finals before Game 5. She provided a spark off the bench and played 21 minutes on Sunday, her most in any of the 11 Liberty playoff games.
Thornton, a solid 6-foot-1 forward, matched up with the much smaller Williams on the ensuing possession. The defensive-minded Thornton was very active both on and off the ball. She anticipated a pass from Williams to the wing, and she reached her hand out and got a piece of the ball.
Thornton sprinted and dove headfirst to save it, but the ball was clearly out of bounds. As Stewart jogged over to help her up, Thornton enthusiastically popped up and got high-fives from her teammates. The crowd loved her effort and showed their support once again.
After the inbounds pass, Williams caught Jones on a switch and beat her to the basket. She flipped up a layup attempt that bounced out. Sabally secured the rebound. It was one of her seven rebounds for the game.
With their rising energy, the Liberty played the next offensive possession with pace. They quickly moved the ball from one side to the other. Jones was on the block with Collier on her back. Jones worked her way further inside and drew a foul on Collier.
She made both free throws to put the Liberty up by three. It was only the third foul on Collier, but it was costly. Collier finished regulation with five fouls and eventually fouled out in overtime.
Jones made both free throws. While Stewart and Ionescu got the majority of the headlines this season, it was Jones who was ultimately the difference.
Stewart and Ionescu struggled shooting all series. They finished with the two worst effective field goal percentages (eFG%) on the Liberty in the Finals. Stewart had a 35.8% eFG% on 95 field-goal attempts. She also had some massive missed free throws that could’ve cost the Liberty the series. Ionescu was even worse from the field shooting only 35.2% eFG% on 81 attempts. She was 1-for-19 from the field in Game 5.
Jones, however, was sensational. She had a 61.4% eFG% on 57 attempts and was a perfect 19-for-19 from the free-throw line. The Finals MVP averaged 17.8 points and 7.6 rebounds per game.
FINALS MVP 🏆 https://t.co/Xkm1Pjjnf0
— Kenyon Wingenbach (@FourTheGameWBB) October 21, 2024
After Jones’s free throws, the Lynx attacked with one of their favorite sets. Thornton and Sabally switched a fake stationary handoff from Smith to Williams. Smith took two dribbles to her left looking for a three-player action on the opposite side of the floor involving McBride and Collier.
Thorton pounced on Smith’s timidness, and she could not handle the physicality. Thornton forced a jump ball and unleashed an intense celebration with the roar of the crowd behind her.
WNBA Champions
The quarter ended with the Liberty effectively executing a two-for-one opportunity. Ionescu and Sabally ran a high ball screen with the other three Liberty players spaced along the baseline. Collier switched onto Ionescu, but McBride was forced over the screen. That left Sabally open on the short roll.
She caught the ball from Ionescu at the top of the key and momentarily morphed into the best athlete on the floor. She took one dribble and elevated over the top of Smith, an All-Defensive Team member this season, finishing with a floater as she handled the contact.
The Liberty finished the third quarter on a 14-6 run. Jones and Sabally scored all 14 points.
Sabally had as many points in the game as Stewart, who played all 45 minutes, and Fiebich, who played 40 minutes.
Sabally played 17 minutes.
It was a fitting ending to the quarter for Sabally, who was so excited about being interviewed by ESPN reporter Holly Rowe before the commercial break that she said, “I’ve never done this before!” to Rowe before the first question.
It wasn’t easy; it wasn’t supposed to be easy. And the ending was marred in officiating controversy. There were multiple storylines from Game 5 by both teams that could’ve been highlighted depending on the final result.
It was the last four minutes of the third quarter that turned the tide for the Liberty.
One of these teams had to lose, and it was going to be heartbreaking either way.
But it was the Liberty who prevailed.
When asked by Rowe how she stays composed and ready to contribute, Sabally said, “I don’t know – it’s fun. I’m blessed. I mean, look at this arena. This is what I’ve been dreaming of. I’m just ready to get this win.”
It was their first championship in franchise history. It doesn’t matter to them how they got it done.
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