Basketball – Sabally and Fiebich: New York’s new basketball heroines

Even before the final siren, Nyara Sabally and Leonie Fiebich took a moment for themselves. As the final seconds ticked down in the fifth game of the WNBA finals, the two national players walked toward each other on the center line of the court, their hands in front of their faces. What followed was a long, deep hug. At this point it was already clear that New York Liberty would win the decisive game against the Minnesota Lynx and thus the WNBA championship.

When Sabally and Fiebich broke away from their embrace a little later, complete chaos had already broken out around them. Streamers rained down from the ceiling of the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, her teammate Sabrina Ionescu lay on the floor next to the two Germans, screaming with joy, and cameramen and photographers streamed onto the field to get very close to the women playing for the WNBA -Founding member New York Liberty were finally able to win their first title after 28 years.

»I’ve worked for moments like this my whole career. To have achieved this now, at home in the fifth game, means the world to me. I’m at a loss for words,” explained Nyara Sabally a little later when the championship trophy was presented, while the 17,732 fans in the sold-out arena loudly chanted her name. Before the 24-year-old could say anything else, her older sister Satou – who also plays in the WNBA for the Dallas Wings – stormed the interview and ensured the second hug between two German national players at the championship celebration in New York.

The fact that Nyara was asked to do a television interview directly after the game in front of an audience of millions in the USA was due to the outstanding performance with which the Berliner contributed to her Liberty’s 67:62 victory. The statistics ended with 13 points and seven rebounds. In the four hard-fought finals before, of which New York and Minnesota each won two, Sabally never scored more than four points as a substitute.

But in the crucial last game of the final series on Monday night, the German probably showed her best playoff game in the New York jersey. »Ny(ara) was always ready and knew that her time in the final would come. She was the X factor today. We were tired, we tried everything, but we needed a spark, and she was exactly that. We are so proud of her,” said US superstar Breanna Stewart, praising her German teammate after the game.

For a long time, especially in the first half, it looked as if New York would be less able to cope with the enormous pressure of the playoff than Minnesota. The Lynx took an immediate 6-0 lead and were ahead 19-10 after the first quarter. By the break, the New Yorkers had fought their way back to 27:34. But Liberty stars Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu in particular couldn’t find their offensive rhythm at all thanks to the Lynx’s strong defense. Stewart had five points at halftime, Ionescu had zero points.

In the third period, both teams had problems converting their shots until a strong sequence from the two German Liberty players gave New York their first lead. When the score was 36:38 for Minnesota, Fiebich stole the ball from the Lynx. Then builder Ionescu found Nyara Sabally with a clever pass directly under the basket. Sabally was able to equalize, then secured the rebound after a Minnesota missed throw and made it 40:38 after another Ionescu pass. With nine points in the third quarter, the 24-year-old played a decisive role in New York finally finding its way back into the game.

Despite the euphoric fans in Brooklyn, who cheered their team even louder after the first lead, the game remained extremely close until the end of the fourth quarter. When Breanna Stewart showed nerves and missed two free throws with 38 seconds left with the score at 58:60 for Minnesota, there were many signs that New York’s title trauma would continue. But Stewart was fouled again three seconds before the end of the game and this time coldly converted both free throws.

The score then went into five minutes of extra time at 60:60. Liberty coach Sandy Brondello sent her two German players onto the floor right from the start. And the Australian’s decision should pay off. Leonie Fiebich hit the first three-pointer from the right corner to give New York a 63:60 lead. A little later, Sabally made the right guess on defense, intercepted a pass from Minnesota, went to the basket alone and made it 65:60. New York no longer gave up this lead.

»To be honest, I still haven’t realized what has happened in the last few months. Nyara and I spent every day together, first with the national team, then back here in New York. We had big goals and I’m so proud that we achieved them,” summed up Leonie Fiebich, who again showed a strong performance as a starter with 13 points and seven rebounds. Fiebich and the Sabally sisters had already celebrated great success at the Olympics in Paris by reaching the quarter-finals with Germany.

Now, after Marlies Askamp (2002) and Dirk Nowitzki (2011), the two Liberty players are also one of the four German basketball players who won the championship title in the USA. After the victory, Nyara Sabally shouted the secret of success in her best Berlin accent into the US television microphones in German: “Always on, wa!”