Liberty's On-Court Chemistry at Its Purest In Vital Victory

The New York Liberty's gambit of familiarity continues to pay off.

Brandon Todd, NY Liberty

BROOKLYN-Many a gathering has been extended, many a welcome overstayed, many an extra drink ordered when the remaining time on a basketball game's countdown clock stretches far beyond what is advertised. For a few precious minutes, however, the New York Liberty and Las Vegas Aces engaged in basketball at its relative purest in an instant classic at Barclays Center on Tuesday night.

Both teams left their respective benches with 5:18 left in the allotted time of Game 2 of the WNBA semifinal set. They did not return until only 11 seconds remained on the clock, granted the almost unheard-of concept of teams getting five minutes off the clock without consulting in a huddle.

Sure, there were stoppages for fouls and turnovers but nothing that could led to further conversation with either Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello or her Sin City counterpart Becky Hammon. In the end, Brondello's bearers of seafoam escaped from New York with an 88-84 win, rendering the journey to the franchise's first postseason title halfway over and one step closer to a vengeful victory over the Aces, who took them down in last season's WNBA Finals.

"We've grown so much as a team," head coach Sandy Brondello said earlier in the series. "You guys have seen us these last two years, from year one to year two, just our growth, the chemistry, that's a part of more time together and just building deeper relationships and experiences on the court that we can continue to be, to get better."

"What's our potential? We knew it was just about time. But, yeah, we have a lot of confidence, but we know we still have to go out there and play in the right way."

While newcomers (i.e. Leonie Fiebich) have undoubtedly helped pave the way, the Liberty's new path has been most forged by familiar faces looking to atone for last year's mistakes: Ionescu's breakout postseason (second in scoring and assists among players still competing in the tournament) has led the way while double-doubles from Jonquel Jones and Breanna Stewart have been commonplace. New York has also readily welcomed back the talents of Betnijah Laney-Hamilton while Kayla Thornton and Courtney Vandersloot have come off the bench.

Brandon Todd, NY Liberty

Those six women and more were the headliners of a relatively quiet offseason in New York, one where they quietly restocked and brooded amidst the hullabaloo of a Las Vegas repeat, heralded rookie entries, and Olympic prep. New York management instead heavily banked upon the chemistry developed amidst the relatively successful experiment of 2023 playing out in a similar fashion, albeit without the dreaded getting-to-know-you phase.

That, Laney-Hamilton implied, has allowed New York to stick to the plans established in practice without drastic adjustments.

"We had a pretty solid game plan going in," she said. "We know what they can be capable of, but we know what we had to do as well. These are all things that we prepare for and shoot for in a day's time."

The gambit is paying off and it was on its purest display over the final five-plus on Tuesday: unable to directly consult Brondello, the Liberty managed to break through Las Vegas' own championship-garnered knowledge to keep pace over the thrilling final minutes. The New Yorkers played to their strengths learned in over less than two years of collaboration, that time compacted even further by injuries (such as Laney-Hamilton and Vandersloot's lengthy absences over the summer).

Brandon Todd, NY Liberty

By the time they reported back to Brondello, however (the long-awaited huddle prompted by a Las Vegas timeout), the Liberty enough pull to carry a slim lead and the momentum for the final push, which was prompted by the epic stretch to close things out.

It certainly wasn't the seven hours so popular on football Sundays, but five minutes of commercial-free basketball may have well allowed the Liberty to draw more power for the final push.

"I think that that's what that comes with growth and I think that we responded well (to that)," said Courtney Vandersloot, she of 12 points and four rebounds in relief on Tuesday. "We have been working all season to get to a point where we are all on the same page and we don't need the huddles. Of course, the huddles are nice to be able to be able to regroup and communicate, especially when it's so loud out there, but we have to trust one another, and we've been building that trust from the beginning. So I think it really showed tonight."

New York gets a chance to close the series out on Friday night in Las Vegas (9:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2).

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