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After Leonie Fiebich squeezed by Breanna Stewart’s screen and left Allisha Gray stumbling behind her during Sunday’s game, the German wing saw an open runway to the basket and attacked it like a running back through a hole. 

Fiebich laid it in for the Liberty’s first basket of the game. 

Later in the first quarter, Fiebich got a steal and then on the other end of the floor Stewart fed Fiebich, who, after a brief hesitation, knocked down a 3. 

That first quarter set the tone for the type of game Fiebich was going to have. 

Fiebich had eight points in the first half and played a major role in the Liberty’s third-quarter rally that eventually led to their 79-72 win. She finished with a regular-season career-high 21 points on 8-for-9 shooting and 4-of-5 from deep. 

It came just a few days after Fiebich dropped 15 points in a win against the Aces. 

The past two games have been growth for Fiebich. She was determined and attacked the basket with velocity. She finished strong and was confident. 

“Leo has a bag that’s deeper than just a 3-and-D player and you’re starting to see it especially in these past two games when she takes an iso opportunity and really gets downhill, gets to the basket,” Stewart said. “But for Leo, it’s all about confidence.” 

With the way Fiebich plays, it’s easy to forget that this is only her second WNBA season. The 25-year-old plays like a seasoned role player. 

But Sandy Brondello knows Fiebich has another level to reach. 

“Love everything about Leo and what she brings to this team. She’s the ultimate professional, how she comes ready to play and selfless,” Brondello said. “We’re encouraging her to shoot obviously, and put her in the actions there because she’s the most pure shooter I’ve ever seen. And with her size, at 6-foot-4, her ability. If you come off a screen to just get balance and shoot it, it’s beautiful.” 

Fiebich was annoyed last week because everyone had been pestering her — from her coaches and some teammates to media and fans — to be more aggressive in hunting for her shot. But that’s never been Fiebich’s approach to the game. 

On offense, she’s a great floor spacer and the ball moves smoother when she’s out there. But Fiebich prioritizes defense and shutting down opponents. She loves doing the dirty work and handling the unsung duties that often make her teammates shine. 

“Honestly, I just have fun on defense. I’m just annoying my opponent,” Fiebich said. “For me, if you go into a game with an offensive mindset, you never know if your shot is going to fall or not. You never know if you get the calls and on defense, you really always know what you have to do — the aggression you play with and the intensity — and that’s just something you can control, and yeah, I just don’t want to rely on the uncontrollables on offense.” 

Fiebich isn’t a player that Brondello and her staff have to worry about when it comes to shot selection. 

The objective now is for the Liberty to continue to build up Fiebich’s confidence as a scorer. 

“Everyone is really happy when Leo is playing like that,” Marine Johannès said. “Every night, she’s just doing a great job, but she’s also doing the dirty job. So yeah, tonight, seeing her get shots and be comfortable on the court was really good for us and I hope that it can be like that every day for her because it was really great.”