Leonie Fiebich and New York Liberty Eliminated from WNBA Finals

Basketball national player Leonie Fiebich and the New York Liberty missed out on the WNBA finals after dropping the third game of their semifinal series 85-83 to Atlanta Dream on Friday night, spox.com reported. The 26-year-old and her teammates suffered the narrow defeat in New York’s first home game of the round, completing a 3-0 sweep for the Georgia-based franchise.

Atlanta advanced to the championship round for the first time since 2013. The Dream will face the Golden State Valkyries starting Oct. 17, after Golden State completed their own 3-0 sweep against the defending champion Las Vegas Aces, according to sportschau.de.

Fiebich Starts as Atlanta Sweeps New York

Fiebich again earned the nod in the starting lineup for New York. She logged nearly 37 minutes of floor time in the elimination contest, finishing with eight points. The offensive load for the 2024 champions was shouldered by Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones, who each scored 26 points. On the other side, Angel Reese powered Atlanta to the decisive road victory with a stat line of 22 points and nine rebounds, as reported by spox.com.

The loss ended New York’s postseason run in straight games.

Stewart Laments Missed Late Opportunity

Postgame remarks from the New York locker room centered on a possession in the closing seconds. Stewart pointed directly to a missed chance that could have tied the score with nine ticks remaining on the clock. “I missed an easy layup to tie the game, that is really annoying,” Stewart said, as detailed by spox.com and sportschau.de.

Stewart also offered credit to the victors for their physical style of play across the three matchups. “Atlanta is a tough team. You have to give them a lot of credit because they made it hard for us on every single night,” Stewart added. She described the postseason exit as a missed opportunity, noting the difficulty of reaching the finals and securing a WNBA championship.

Golden State Awaits Atlanta in the Finals

With the semifinal round concluded via two 3-0 sweeps, the WNBA championship pairing is set. Atlanta moves on to meet the Golden State Valkyries, who swept the Las Vegas Aces in their respective series. The finals schedule opens on Oct. 17, pitting the surging Dream against Golden State.