The first round of the WNBA playoffs went almost as expected: all of the top four seeds advanced, with all but the Connecticut Sun sweeping their respective series 2-0.
It didn’t come without teams putting up a fight, however. Natasha Cloud put up a 33-point, nine-assist, six-rebound and four-steal performance to try and keep the Washington Mystics in the fight against the New York Liberty, forcing overtime in Game 2. Meanwhile, the Minnesota Lynx bounced back from their 30-point Game 1 loss to take Game 2 off the Sun and force a Game 3.
With the Las Vegas Aces, Dallas Wings, Sun and Liberty all set to play a best-of-five series before the finals are set, here’s a look at how each semifinal shapes up.
No. 1 Las Vegas vs. No. 4 Dallas
The Chicago Sky were no match for the top-seeded Aces, who won both matches by at least 22 points and held Kahleah Copper to 15 points in Game 1 before she went off for 25 points in Game 2.
But even Copper’s efforts alongside Dana Evans’ 22 points were no match for Defensive Player of the Year A’ja Wilson’s 38 points, 16 rebounds and four blocks, with Sixth Woman of the Year Alysha Clark, Jackie Young and Kelsey Plum all adding 10-plus points.
Head-to-head: The Aces led their season series 3-1, though the Wings did hand the Aces just their second loss of the season in a close 80-78 match.
Since that loss, the Aces beat the Wings by double digits in both of their following meetings, including a 20-point win in their final meeting of the season on Aug. 8.
The X-factor: With all the accolades to her name, signs point towards Wilson but as pointed out ahead of the first round, the Aces run with the same core of players who were keys to their championship run last season. Chelsea Gray, Plum and Young all take turns as Las Vegas’ scoring machine, while Gray leads the playmaking efforts and Wilson controls the boards.
For the Wings, they also have multiple players who are game-changers. Satou Sabally was named the league’s Most Improved Player, averaging career highs in points with 18.6, 8.1 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.8 steals per game. Sabally also compiled 14 double-doubles and recorded the Wings’ first triple-double in franchise history. Of course, the team is led by Arike Ogunbowale in scoring, averaging 21.2 points per game, and also leading the team with 4.5 assists per game.
One player to watch: Kiah Stokes has been dominating the defensive boards for the Aces and is averaging 12.5 rebounds per game this postseason. While she may not be producing in terms of scoring — not that Las Vegas needs help in that department — her domination on the boards over Chicago was a glimpse of her abilities at centre.
Teaira McCowan has averaged a double-double of 14.5 points and 15 rebounds this postseason, also averaging two blocks per game for the Wings as she controls the paint and is a two-way threat for Dallas.
Prediction: Aces in 4. While the Wings did manage to defeat the Aces in the regular season, the margin was a single basket, and the Aces responded by hammering down on the Wings in their next two meetings. While the Wings have the talent to be able to take a game off the Aces again, the Las Vegas core led by Wilson is just so productive.
No. 2 New York vs. No. 3 Connecticut
While New York did take their series in two games, their second game was pushed to overtime. Cloud put on an all-time performance that she called “depositing her cheque,” while the Sun were the only team to play all three games of a first-round series as the Lynx narrowly took Game 2 before the Sun convincingly claimed the series in Game 3.
Before their regular season finale loss to the Mystics, the Liberty were on an eight-game winning streak including two wins over the Sun, with a 31-point win margin in those two games for the Liberty.
Head-to-head: The Liberty swept the season series 4-0 with the closest victory coming from an overtime win 95-90, while their largest margin of victory was their 31-point win in their final meeting of the regular season.
The X-factor: The Liberty, and the Sun for that matter, are both teams loaded with talent, like the Aces. While all of New York’s starting five make a difference, Jonquel Jones averaged a double-double against the Mystics, 19.5 points and 13 rebounds, and recorded an average of 2.5 blocks per game. She has resurged as one of the best in the league as the 2021 MVP had a slow start to the season on her new team.
Connecticut’s X-factor is its player whose name should be in the MVP race a little bit louder: Alyssa Thomas. The triple-double queen averaged nearly that in the regular season, tallying an average of 15.5 points, 9.9 rebounds and 7.9 assists per game along with 1.8 steals. She put up back-to-back 26-plus point games in Game 2 and Game 3 against the Lynx, shooting over 55 per cent from the field in each of those games.
One player to watch: Tyasha Harris scored 18 points in the Sun’s Game 3 win over the Lynx, and added another 12 points in Game 1, shooting over 57 per cent in both of those games and playing at least 20 minutes. She has been shooting daggers from beyond the three-point arc and will make the Liberty play her deep.
Nobody needs to be told to watch Courtney Vandersloot, but she is leading the Liberty in both assists and steals this postseason. Her playmaking abilities at the point have resulted in an average of 7.5 points, eight assists, 4.5 rebounds and two steals per game.
Prediction: Liberty in 4. With all cylinders firing, the Liberty have shown what they are capable of, and also clearly have Connecticut’s number from what they’ve seen in the regular season. The Sun have lots of talent like Thomas, DeWanna Bonner and Bec Allen among many, but the Liberty’s starting five are powerful.