Higher-seeded teams sweep Game 1s

Four first-round Game 1s. Four wins for the higher-seeded teams.

The 2024 WNBA playoffs began with a sweep for the higher-seeded squads:

No. 1-seed New York Liberty 83, No. 8-seed Atlanta Dream 69

No. 3 seed Connecticut Sun 93, No. 6-seed Indiana Fever 69

No. 2-seed Minnesota Lynx 102, No. 7-seed Phoenix Mercury 95

No. 4-seed Las Vegas Aces 78, No. 5-seed Seattle Storm 67

Here’s how the Liberty, Sun, Lynx and Aces got the jobs done:

Liberty, Leo lap Dream

Head coach Sandy Brondello showed she was not messing around on Sunday afternoon, making a surprise change to the starting lineup. To the bench went Courtney Vandersloot, the championship-winning point guard who has lost a step or two over the past season, and into the first five was Leonie Fiebich, the Sixth Player of the Year candidate who offers more size on defense and a greater willingness to shoot on offense.

Fiebich made Brondello look quite prescient. The 6-foot-4 first-year wing from Germany turned in a historic playoff debut. After making her first five shots, Fiebich was on her way to a career-high 21-point afternoon, going 7-for-8 from the field and 4-for-4 from 3. She also added two steals.

The urgent mindset Brondello communicated with the starting lineup shift was reflected throughout the roster. The No. 1-seed Liberty did not waste any time establishing a lead that the No. 8-seed Dream would not come close to overcoming. Leading by 18 points at the half, New York would stretch their advantage to as many as 22 points. By the fourth quarter, Dream head coach Tanisha Wright had thrown in the towel, with only reserves playing the game’s final 10 minutes. The Liberty cruised to the 83-69 Game 1 win.

Despite coming off the bench, Vandersloot also had a historic afternoon, with three assists allowing her to surpass Sue Bird, who was sitting courtside a Barclays Center, for the most assists in WNBA playoff history.

Breanna Stewart had a double-double of 20 points and 11 boards for New York, while Sabrina Ionescu netted a trio of triples, finishing with 17 points and five assists. Rhyne Howard led Atlanta with 14 points, albeit on 14 field goal attempts. She also had six boards, four assists and three steals. Former Liberty star Tina Charles added 12 points and seven rebounds for the Dream.

A lot must change for Atlanta to challenge, much less defeat, New York in Game 2, which will be held Tuesday, Sept. 24 at 7:30 p.m. ET in Brooklyn (ESPN). Otherwise, the top-seeded Liberty will ease out of the first round without much stress or sweat.

Mabrey shines as Sun burn Fever

A number of Fever faithful invaded Mohegan Sun Arena on Sunday afternoon. Yet, the hometown and No. 3-seed Sun ultimately were unfazed by the volume of visitors supporting the No. 6-seed Fever as they surged to the Game 1 win, 93-69.

The first half was a start-and-stop scrap, featuring lots of fouls and a few too many clock issues. Sun head coach Stephanie White deputized DeWanna Bonner on Caitlin Clark. The 15-year vet, who’s 6-foot-4 with seemingly endless limbs, successfully slowed the star rookie, holding her to three points on 1-for-9 shooting through the first two quarters. The defensive effort also energized her offense, as Bonner’s 16 points helped Connecticut gain a 46-38 halftime advantage.

Even as the game opened up in the second half, the Sun exerted tighter control over the proceedings. Marina Mabrey got the second-half start for the Sun, as an early-game ankle injury sidelined starting guard Ty Harris for the remainder of the afternoon. Mabrey responded by sinking a number of timely triples, preventing the Fever from cutting Connecticut’s steadily increasing margin. Mabrey had three 3s and 11 points in the third quarter before adding nine points, including two more 3s, in the final frame. She finished with 27 points, the most points scored by a bench player in WNBA playoff history.

Connecticut also dialed up their defense, with their effort on that end of the floor highlighted by a chasedown block by DiJonai Carrington.

Indiana’s inability to connect from behind the arc sunk any upset hopes. Since the Olympic break, the Fever had shot nearly 40 percent from 3 as a team. On Sunday, they were 6-for-28 from deep, with both Clark and Kelsey Mitchell connecting on less than 20 percent of their long-range attempts and managing only two 3s a piece. So, after customarily crossing the 90-point plateau over the season’s final stretch, the Fever found their way to less than 70 points. Mitchell led the team with 21 points, with Aliyah Boston adding a double-double of 17 points and 11 rebounds. Clark had 11 points and eight assists.

On the Sun side, Mabrey’s outburst was supported by Bonner’s sustained scoring effort; she finished with 22 points. Thomas tallied her fourth-career playoff triple-double with 12 points, 10 rebounds and 13 assists.

To extend the series to a Game 3 in Indiana, the Fever need the 3-point gods to smile on them in Game 2, which is scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 25 at 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN) in Connecticut.

Lynx, Collier outlast Mercury, Cloud

Although she was the runner up on the 2024 WNBA MVP ballot, Napheesa Collier turned in an MVPhee performance on Sunday. Her 23 first-half points spurred the No. 2-seed Lynx to a 56-42 lead at halftime over the No. 7-seed Mercury. With the Lynx leading by as many as 23 points in the first 20 minutes, the game had the makings of a rout.

However, Natasha Cloud refused to let the Mercury go down without a fight. The last time she was on a playoff court, Cloud, then with the Washington Mystics, had 33 points, nine assists, six rebounds and four steals, valiantly trying to prevent the Liberty from sweeping the Mystics in last year’s first round. On Sunday, she authored another epic postseason performance, with 33 points, 10 assists and six rebounds. Cloud, helped by five triples from Diana Taurasi, prevented the Lynx from pulling away.

In the fourth quarter, Kahleah Copper joined the party, scoring eight points in first five minutes of the final frame to give the Mercury a one-point lead, 86-85, with four and half minutes to go.

Courtney Williams then countered for Lynx, hitting a midranger before finding Myisha Hines-Allen (twice) and Napheesa Collier for easy scores. With just under two minutes to go, Minnesota clung to a 93-92 lead. They’d then score the next seven points, including a dagger 3 from Bridget Carleton. Alanna Smith consolidated the emotional crescendo caused by Carleton’s 3 with a block on a Copper drive. From there, the Lynx iced the game at the free throw line, exhaling with a 102-95 win.

Collier finished with 38 points, her new playoff career high and just four points shy of Angel McCoughtry’s single-game playoff scoring record; she also had six rebounds and four assists. Kayla McBride added 20 points, while Hines-Allen contributed 10 points and five boards from off the bench. Williams finished with nine points and eight assists. For Phoenix, Cloud’s tour de force was complemented by 21 points from Taurasi. Copper finished with 16 points. It was a quieter afternoon for Brittney Griner, who had 10 points and six boards.

Game 2 tips off on Wednesday, Sept. 25 at 9:30 p.m. ET (ESPN) in Minnesota. To send the series to a decisive Game 3 in Phoenix, the Mercury likely need another heroic effort from Cloud, along with more spectacular contributions from her co-stars.

Aces, A’ja finish strong against Storm

The celebratory mood in Michelob ULTRA Arena did not translate to a fast start for the back-to-back defending champs and newly-minted three-time MVP. (Maybe don’t announce the unanimous MVP award in the early morning hours on a game day?)

The No. 4-seed Aces scored just nine first-quarter points, with A’ja Wilson going 1-for-8 from the field. The No. 5-seed Storm weren’t exactly on fire either, but still managed to double up the home team. Even as both teams found a scoring groove in the second quarter, Seattle maintained their edge at halftime, 42-38. Nneka Ogwumike had 13 first-half points, while Jordan Horston buoyed the Storm with eight points from off the bench in the second quarter. Sixth Player of the Year candidate Tiffany Hayes likewise gave the Aces a lift, with 12 points in the second period.

After the break, Vegas began to resemble the team that finished the regular season by winning nine of their last 10 games. Wilson found her M’VP form, scoring 15 points on 7-for-10 shooting in the third quarter. Seattle mostly kept pace, with Gabby Williams’ nine third-quarter points helping her team hold a one-point lead, 65-64, entering the final 10 minutes.

The fourth quarter, however, was a different story. The Storm’s offense evaporated, a devastating dry spell induced, in part, by the Aces’ defense. Seattle did not make a field goal in the fourth, with a pair of free throws from Skylar Diggins-Smith serving as the Storm’s only two points. Seattle also had six of their 13 turnovers in the final period.

While Wilson cooled off, the Aces found enough offense to eventually pull away for the 78-67 win. Kelsey Plum’s only two points of the evening gave Vegas their first lead of the game with approximately seven minutes remaining. Down the stretch, the queen of the clutch, Chelsea Gray, put the finishing touches on the victory, propelling Vegas’ 8-0 closing run.

Wilson finished with 21 points, eight rebounds and five blocks. Hayes totaled 20 points, four rebounds and five steals. Gray finished with 16 points and seven assists. Diggins-Smith led Seattle with 16 points and eight assists. Scoreless in the second half, Ogwumike finished with 13 points and 10 boards. Jewell Loyd, who had missed the final three games of the regular season with knee irritation, scored just six points. Ezi Magbegor missed the game due to a concussion.

It seems like Seattle missed their opportunity to steal a game. Surely, the Aces will come out with more firepower in Game 2, which will be on Tuesday, Sept. 24 at 9:30 p.m. ET (ESPN).