Kelsey Plum of the Las Vegas Aces during Game 2 against the Seattle Storm on September 24, 2024. Courtesy of Las Vegas Aces.
What started as eight teams is now down to four as the WNBA closes out round one of the playoffs with sweeps in all four of the best-of-three series.
New York Liberty vs. Atlanta Dream
After a surprise surge at the end of the regular season to take the 8th playoff spot, the Atlanta Dream took on the top-seeded New York Liberty in the first round. The Liberty defeated the Dream in two games, outscoring them 83-69 and 91-82.
Game one showed the prowess of Liberty rookie Leonie Fiebich, who has been having a breakout season with the team. Fiebich had the highest point total of any Liberty player with 21 points, edging out 2023 league MVP Breanna Stewart by one point. If game one was Fiebich’s game, then game two was Sabrina Ionescu’s. In game two, Ionescu tied the franchise record for most points scored in a playoff game with 36 total. With a near 50% field goal percentage and a 45.5% three-point percentage, Ionescu straight-up dominated.
The Liberty are now facing the Las Vegas Aces in the second round, up 1-0 in the best-of-five series.
Minnesota Lynx vs. Phoenix Mercury
The story of the Lynx/Mercury series is quite simply Napheesa Collier. While you could argue there’s something to be said for the narrative of this possibly being Diana Taurasi’s last WNBA playoffs ever, Collier deserves her flowers for an outstanding performance.
The second-seeded Lynx, the winners of this year's WNBA Commissioner’s Cup, beat the Mercury handily in games one and two, winning 102-95 and 101-88. Collier, who recently won Defensive Player of the Year, scored 38 points in game one and 42 points in game two. Collier also had help from Kayla McBride, who scored the second-highest point total in both games.
The Lynx are currently down one game to the Connecticut Sun in round two.
Las Vegas Aces vs. Seattle Storm
The Las Vegas Aces also took down the Seattle Storm in two games. Despite mixed results in the regular season and a demotion to the fourth seed as the defending champions, the Aces held leads of nearly 10 points in both games.
Most notable was the defensive effort by the Aces in the fourth quarter of game one. In the third quarter of the game, the Storm scored 23 points, but in the fourth the Aces held them to just two total points.
Despite the near shutout at the end of game one, Seattle made an intense effort to come back in game two which ended in a final score of 83-76. Gabby Williams had 20 points total, the highest for the team, but her efforts along with Nneka Ogwumike’s 10 total rebounds and Skylar Diggins-Smith’s 10 assists still fell short.
The Aces are currently down one game to their 2023 WNBA Finals opponent the New York Liberty in the second round.
Indiana Fever vs. Connecticut Sun
The Fever/Sun matchup was the most watched of any of the first round games and did not disappoint with drama and a well-earned sweep from the Sun. Before the Olympic break, the Sun had consistently been the top team in the league, and they reminded everyone of that during this series. In game one Connecticut won 93-69, and the final score of game two was 87-81 in their favor.
Fever star and Rookie of the Year Caitlin Clark struggled with her trademark free throws in both games of this series, going 2-13 from the line in game one and 3-12 in game two.
For the Sun, mid-season addition Marina Mabrey showed up and showed out, totaling the highest number of points for the team in game one with 27. She was helped by teammate Alyssa Thomas, who delivered 12 points in game one and 19 points in game two.
The Sun are currently up 1-0 on the Minnesota Lynx in round two.
Edited by Emily Tsipis
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