DALLAS — Maren Vouthoux was waiting for her moment.
And in her fifth game of the season, that breakthrough happened. Boy, was freedom needed?
Fauthoux recorded her first career double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds to go along with two assists in the Liberty’s 99-98 road win against the Wings.
She became the first rookie guard to put up that stat line and drain a pair of 3s off the bench.
Fauthoux was so impressive that coach Chris DeMarco decided to use her for the full five minutes of overtime.
“It’s a competition,” DeMarco said. “She plays at very high levels. She’s a winner and her teammates believe in her.”
Monday was a long time ago for Vothox. The Liberty’s third-round pick in the 2021 draft signed a development contract this offseason, meaning she can play in just 12 regular-season games before her contract is converted to a standard deal in order to play more.
Fauthoux began the season on the sidelines as she was on her way back from a year-long rehab from a torn anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee.
She made her WNBA debut on June 6, and had not logged more than 15 minutes in a game until Monday, when she played 27 minutes. Her career high for points entering Monday was four.
Fauthoux’s performance on Monday may have been buried by Sabrina Ionescu’s overtime heroics and Brianna Stewart’s impressive come-from-behind triple-double.
But Vothox will never forget this moment.
“It’s special because I want to play every time, every game,” she told The Post. “It was hard to see other people playing, but I was sure my time would come, and I work really hard, and I’m really good with my teammates, so [helped] “It’s a lot for me tonight to participate in the match.”
When Fauthoux was tasked with playing in overtime, she was ready.
“I was feeling good,” she said. “And I know it’s my game. I know I can finally do it, so I was really happy inside because, for me, I feel like I’m really back now from my injury.”
Now, it’s about building the game, both for herself and as a team. The Liberty had lost four straight games and eight of their last 10 regular season games before Monday.
“We really needed that win at the end,” Vouthoux said. “So we fight a lot together. It was difficult because they are a really great team, but we find strength in each other. So I was feeling good in the team.”