Sandy Brondello shows emotion and accountability following Game 4 loss

But on Friday night following a rollercoaster ride of a Game 4 of the WNBA finals, where she and her team fell to the Minnesota Lynx 82-80 on a pair of free throws made by Bridget Carleton with two seconds left in regulation, she did not hold back.

She was fervid and much more explosive than at any other time this season. While she famously dropped multiple f-bombs in scrums with reporters last October following the Liberty’s first two WNBA Finals loses to the Las Vegas Aces, she hadn’t really publicly let out all of her frustration since.

“I’m one of the nicest bloody coaches in this league, but this pisses me off,” Brondello said postgame. “Just be fair.”

What did she find unjust? When she was asked about both Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu‘s poor shooting performances (both stars combined to shoot just 27 % from the field) she couldn’t help but look down at the boxscore sitting in front of her.

“I know [Minnesota Lynx head coach and President of Basketball operations] Cheryl [Reeve] talked about it last time, but we got no calls today,” Brondello said referring to the disparity in free throws between the two teams. Minnesota attempted 20 to the Liberty’s nine. Following Game 3, Reeve expressed how she thought her team had a difficult time “getting to the foul line in this series” and in particular how Stewart had a more favorable whistle than her star Napheesa Collier.

“So, do I need to talk up in a press conference?,” Brondello exclaimed referencing Reeve’s comments from a couple of nights before. “Because they were getting ticky-tacks. And we went down there and got hit and get nothing. It was like 12-6 [personal fouls] at halftime and they tried to even it up near the end. It was 14-9.”

Amid the foul disparity, the Liberty still had ample opportunities to win the game and end the series. The game was tied and Stewart got an offensive rebound with 30 seconds remaining, and Brondello didn’t call a timeout. She had two left, and instead the Liberty committed a shot clock violation with 18.3 seconds left. It then was Lynx ball.

When asked about what she was thinking at that moment when she decided not to call a timeout, Brondello replied that she was trying to, but failed to, get an official’s attention due to the noise in the Target Center. “I don’t know, maybe I just have to sprint out in the middle of the court next time,” she said. “So I’ve got to be better.”

After her grievances and mea culpas were communicated clearly, she was forward-thinking and set a marker. “We’re going to win on our home court,” she said.

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It wasn’t that she and the team are going to try, or that the goal will be to win Game 5. She confidently proclaimed that the Liberty are winning Game 5, and there’s no doubt in her mind about it.

Stewart followed suit, echoing Brondello in multiple ways. First, she explained why she couldn’t score the basketball until seven and a half minutes were left in the second quarter. She began the evening 0-7 shooting from the field. Stewart’s assessment of her own performance was that she responded too quickly to the Lynx defense. She acknowledged that she needed to have better awareness of what Minnesota was trying to take away following Stewart’s 30 piece in the game prior.

There was a comfort for Stewart knowing that her head coach had broken the ice first. But the stance that both Brondello and Stewart took, first admitting to their mistakes and then presenting a confident and united front after is in accordance with how Stewart typically goes about her business. When asked about how morale was kept up in the locker room, all Stewart could reply with was steadfast confidence.

“We’re going to win on our home court,” Stewart said.

Stewart has been called “delusional” before for her unwavering and sometimes unrealistic confidence. When asked a few weeks ago how that philosophy comes into play during difficult and highly emotional times, she said “I know the type of player that I am and the impact that I can have on the court.”

“And whether things aren’t going my way now, I know that eventually, that they will. And for me, like basketball is probably 90% mental. If you believe it, it’s going to happen.”

That sense confidence, rather than panic, alongside disappointment also radiated through Ionescu, who discussed how quickly the turnaround is between Game 3 and Game 4. “Now we gotta go back to New York and take care of business,” she told reporters postgame. Similar to Game 1, Ionescu struggled with her shot and taking care of the ball. She had four turnovers along with her 10 points, six rebound and five assists. The Minnesota defense made sure that she couldn’t play make with ease out of the pick-and-roll. That’s typically what happens when a team’s lead guard is double and triple teamed.

In the Liberty’s previous playoff series, the way New York countered this was by putting the ball in Stewart’s hands and allowing Ionescu to shot make off the ball. But on Friday night, some open looks just didn’t fall. “Early we missed some that we normally make, which just happens sometimes,” Ionescu said.

After her historic 28-footer to conclude Game 3, Ionescu didn’t connect from three. It’s hard to remember the last time Ionescu didn’t make a single trey in a game during the post or regular season.

But rather who did make threes and a lot of them was Jonquel Jones. She hit four shots from beyond the arc and ended the game with 21 points on 7-10 shooting, eight rebounds, two assists, two blocks and a steal. Once again, Jones found a way to perform very well against a team that gave her fits during the regular season. But once again the Liberty didn’t capitalize and fell just by two points.

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“JJ is great for us, and I think we gotta get her more shots,” Leonie Fiebich, who scored 19 points of her own on Friday night said. “She’s super efficient. And yeah, also in defense, those blocks. I said it before, I don’t want to  go up against her. She’s just great for us on the defensive end.”

Alongside Jones’ greatness, the Liberty know that as a collective they ought to do better. That elusive first championship won’t be won if they don’t, and on Friday night the accountability began with Brondello setting the example.

“We all could have done better, including me,” Brondello’s said as her voice quivered still reeling from her own emotions. “Getting that fucking timeout. Sorry I shouldn’t say that, don’t repeat it.”

Brondello was angry at herself and her players knew it. Jones saw Brondello’s vulnerability and rainbow of emotions in real time and made sure to put her hand on her back to comfort her. Without words Jones wanted Brondello to know that it was going to be okay and that the team will rally. Without words Jones’ pat meant: We got you.

Brondello’s players wanted her to know that not pushing for the timeout wasn’t the only reason why the Liberty lost on Friday night. Similar to what went on in Game 1 with Stewart missing a pivotal free throw, usually one play isn’t the only reason for losing a game. Ionescu’s response to Brondello’s public accountability was admitting to the example that her head coach sets for the entire team. Brondello holds herself to a high standard which translates to the team doing the same.

“We’re all in one boat, right?,” Fiebich said about Brondello. “We all make mistakes. We all make silly fouls or whatever. They get easy baskets because we have miscommunication on the court. And her part as well, I think that’s just a great part about her, she’s one of us and you can really feel that.”

Even though Brondello took a rare opportunity and possibly a strategic one to publicly express her grievances and frustrations, her communicative base remains the same. Stewart spoke about how Brondello’s message in the locker room was the same as it’s been throughout this postseason. The Liberty haven’t won anything yet, but they also haven’t lost anything yet either. Their opportunity isn’t lost.

That’s just another way Brondello conveyed to her players that her frequent message continues to apply as the Liberty head into a championship-or-bust Game 5. That’s just essentially just another way of her communicating to her players not to get too high or too low.

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