How WFUV Covered the New York Liberty's Historic WNBA Championship

The confetti streamed down from the rafters, falling on New York Liberty players and coaches hugging at center court in front of a raucous Barclays Center crowd. 

“Your 2024 WNBA champion New York Liberty!” the public address announcer yelled as Frank Sinatra’s “New York, New York” played from the speakers. 

And Madi Dembélé—a Fordham student and WFUV reporter—was there to capture it all from the Brooklyn arena’s press area.

“A picture doesn’t do it justice—it’s truly a moment I won’t forget,” he said.

Dembélé is fully credentialed to cover not only the Liberty but also the Brooklyn Nets for WFUV, Fordham’s NPR-affiliate public media service. And he’s a broadcaster for the Fordham women’s basketball games on WFUV. 

When the opportunity came up last year to cover the Liberty, he jumped on it—and soon sensed that something special was happening. 

“From the moment this team came together, I said they were going to be a dynasty,” he recalled. “I predicted them to win the Finals this year, and last year [they lost to Las Vegas in the WNBA Finals]. I believe this Liberty team is that good.” 

Dembélé, who also hosts a UFC podcast for WFUV and has a passion for combat sports, described the championship game as a “15-round boxing match.”

“You’ve got to be able to weather the storm, and the Liberty were able to pull it all together as a well-oiled machine,” he said.

The WNBA’s Rise 

Dembélé said covering the team this year was special not just because of the Liberty’s stars, like Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones, and Sabrina Ionescu, but also because of the WNBA’s growing popularity. 

“It’s not just this super team era—you talk about the draft, there’s Angel Reese, Caitlin Clark, those players along with those super teams,” he said, referring to the rookie phenoms playing for the Chicago Sky and the Indiana Fever, respectively. “The stars are here in the WNBA.”

The Liberty’s championship, the team’s first in its 28-year history, has also been extra special for New York, said Dembélé, who was born and raised in the city.

“I’ve been a New Yorker for 21 years, and the last time someone won anything was the Giants back in 2012—I was eight,” he said. “Now I finally get to see one. This is the first [New York sports] championship of my lifetime that I remember, and I got to see it in person.” 

Dembélé credited WFUV for providing him and his fellow students with the opportunity to cover all the major New York sports teams alongside the pros and receive on-air broadcast experience.

“For sports, Fordham is the place. If you make a name here at WFUV, it will act as a catalyst for you to do so many different things,” he said, referring to many of the station's alumni, including Ryan Ruocco, ESPN’s lead play-by-play announcer for the WNBA. 

“When you graduate with that [experience], it’s a badge of honor that a lot of other people don’t have.”