WNBA playoffs begin with four games on Sunday

The Atlanta Dream claimed the WNBA’s final playoff spot on Thursday night to complete the league’s postseason field.

Eighth-seeded Atlanta will face the top-seeded New York Liberty in the best-of-three first-round series, which begins Sunday in New York.

The three other matchups also will begin Sunday. The second-seeded Minnesota Lynx drew the seventh-seeded Phoenix Mercury, the third-seeded Connecticut Sun face the sixth-seeded Indiana Fever and the fourth-seeded Las Vegas Aces battle the fifth-seeded Seattle Storm.

The higher-seeded team hosts Games 1 and 2. The lower seed would host Game 3, if necessary.

Two-time defending champion Las Vegas was in the running for the No. 3 seed on Thursday before Connecticut clinched the spot with an 87-54 rout of the Chicago Sky.

Las Vegas is looking to become the first team to win three straight titles since the Houston Comets won four in a row (1997-2000).

Atlanta secured the final spot with a 78-67 upset of the Liberty. The Dream edged out the Washington Mystics, who posted a 92-91 home win over the Indiana Fever.

“This year is special. This has definitely been the toughest year for us with everything that has gone on,” Dream coach Tanisha Wright said afterward. “I’m really proud of our athletes for continuing to fight and never giving in because I think it’s easy to give in after the season that we’ve had.”

Sunday’s game between the Caitlin Clark-led Fever and Sun will be aired on ABC. The three other games that day will be televised on ESPN.

Games 2 and 3 of the Atlanta-New York and Seattle-Las Vegas series are slated for Tuesday and Thursday, pending whether a Game 3 is necessary. The Indiana-Connecticut and Phoenix-Minnesota series are scheduled for Wednesday and Friday games, again depending on whether Game 3 is needed.

The best-of-five semifinals are slated to begin Sept. 29.

The WNBA Finals, also a five-game series, will begin Oct. 10. A Game 5 would be held Oct. 20, if necessary.

–Field Level Media