Mission accomplished. The New York Liberty have finally won their first WNBA championship.

New York needed a decisive Game 5 – and the first winner-take-all overtime game in WNBA Finals history – but on Sunday it beat the Minnesota Lynx 67-62 in overtime to win his first title in 28 seasons. A franchise full of near misses and heartache, having lost in five previous attempts at a title, New York finally added the title of WNBA champions to their legacy.

It wasn't easy. New York trailed by as many as 12 points and didn't make a 3-pointer until late in regulation time. Sabrina Ionescu shot 1:19 and didn't score until the third quarter. And Breanna Stewart was 4 of 15 from the field.

How did the Liberty do it? Which players appeared alongside WNBA Finals MVP Jonquel Jones? ESPN takes a look at four key factors in how New York put the finishing touches on its title run and the only WNBA Finals to feature multiple overtime games.

Sabally turns out to be New York's unsung hero

On a night where Stewart and Ionsecu were having major issues with their shooting, the Liberty needed someone to step up. Nyara Sabally averaged 3.4 points entering Sunday, but the 6-foot-1 reserve center scored 13 points in a playoff-best 17 minutes, contributions that made the difference.

It wasn't just their production; Sabally brought an energy and fearlessness that had been missing. The Liberty trailed by seven points at halftime, but turned the game around in the third quarter and took a three-point lead in the fourth quarter. Sabally scored the basket that made it 38-3 with 3:33 left in the third period, and the layup 26 seconds later gave New York its first lead. Sabally scored nine of her 13 points in the third period. She also got the defensive rebound, one of her eight boards, that essentially iced the game with 13 seconds left in overtime.

Stewart and Ionescu contributed in other ways

Had New York not won Game 5, the shooting against Stewart and Ionescu — who combined to go 5-for-34 — would have been discussed throughout the offseason. The title is even more remarkable when you consider that New York was able to win despite these difficulties. Ionescu missed her first 13 shots — the most consecutive misses in a winner-take-all game in WNBA history — and made one of New York's two 3-pointers. But her eight assists played a big part in the win. She had four in the crucial third quarter, three of which went to Sabally on the pick-and-roll, a connection that began when the two were teammates at Oregon.

And although Stewart never found her jump shot, she made up for it from the free throw line. Their miss at the end of regulation time in Game 1 could have won that contest for New York. With 38 seconds left in the fourth quarter on Sunday, she even missed two serious foul shots that could have made the equalizer possible. However, with five seconds left in regulation, she hit two big free throws that tied the game and sent the game into overtime.

MVP, MVP!

Stewart and Ionescu struggled on Sunday and in Game 4. And both times Jones won the Liberty. Her 17 points led New York on Sunday, as did her 21 in Game 4. She averaged 17.8 points and 7.6 rebounds over the five games, and it seemed like whenever New York really got one, Jones would Korb needed to deliver a low performance, especially on Sunday.

And she was efficient. Jones, who was the 2021 regular season MVP, needed a total of 20 field goal attempts in the final two games of the series to score those 38 points.

Liberty script with great defense

Most of the game was about how well Minnesota's defense played. The Lynx has completely locked up Stewart and Ionescu. They held New York to 28.5% from the field in the first half, the Liberty's worst shooting half of the entire season and a season-low 27 points after two quarters.

But New York's defense won that championship. Minnesota scored 28 points in the final 25 minutes and the league's best 3-point shooting team went 3-for-19 from long range. Of the Lynx's 16 turnovers, New York forced five in overtime.

Stewart will have an easier time forgetting her difficult shooting night after contributing 15 rebounds (12 defensive) and three blocks. Their length cut off lanes in the second half and made shots at the rim difficult.