WNBA Playoffs 2018: First round notebook
The first round of the WNBA Playoffs is in the books, with the Phoenix Mercury and Los Angeles Sparks advancing to the second round. Those games will be played on Thursday night.
The Sparks will face the Washington Mystics in the first game, which can be seen at 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPN 2, while the Mercury will take on the Connecticut Sun in the second game at 8:30 p.m. ET on the same channel.
Now, a few thoughts from the first-round games.
Mercury 101 — Wings 83
Defense dooms Wings
Everyone expected the Wings’ defense — especially in transition — was going to be a problem, and boy was it ever. The Mercury shot 54.2 percent from the field, highlighted by an incredible 20-of-27 at the rim. And yes, the Mercury have a really good offensive team, and hit a few lucky shots, but some of the stuff the Wings were doing was just indefensible — especially in the playoffs. I mean, look at this.
Skylar Diggins-Smith scores in the lane, and a few seconds later Stephanie Talbot has a fastbreak layup on the other end. Look where Talbot is when the ball goes in. She’s even with or below every single Wings player.
Yet somehow she beats all of them down the floor. That’s an incredible outlet by Taurasi, but come on. That can’t happen.
Talbot steps up
All season long, the Mercury have been led by their big three of Diana Taurasi, DeWanna Bonner and Brittney Griner. But the question was, would that be enough come playoff time? In this game, probably so, but it didn’t hurt that they got a big boost from Stephanie Talbot.
The Aussie went for 11 points, 11 rebounds and three assists in over 31 minutes, while taking care of all the dirty work on both ends. Even other players were impressed with her performance.
Taurasi stays undefeated in win-or-go-home games
Of all the remarkable achievements in Taurasi’s career, the fact that she’s never lost in winner-take-all games might be the most ridiculous. She’s now 12–0 in those kind of games after the win Tuesday night, thanks to her 26-point, 12-assist performance. Just incredible.
Is this it for Cambage?
Liz Cambage was amazing in her return to the WNBA, but it’s no secret that she wasn’t exactly super happy during her time here. She mentioned a few weeks ago that she may not return for next season, and after the game she said she’ll make up her mind after her winter season in China. If she does end up leaving — due in large part to poor working conditions — it will represent one of the league’s largest failures in recent memories.
Sparks 75, Lynx 68
So long, Lindsay
Lindsay Whalen announced last week that she was going to call it quits at the end of this season, a move that surprised pretty much no one considering she’s already started her new role as head coach of the University of Minnesota women’s basketball team. Now, with the Lynx’ loss in this game, it’s official. Whalen’s career has come to a close. And what a career it was. Her accolades — which include four titles and more wins than any other WNBA player — are too numerous to list here, but simply doing so wouldn’t do justice to one of the greatest point guards the WNBA has ever seen, anyway. Her toughness, savvy, and penchant for coming up with a big play when her team needed it the most was unmatched. It was a joy watching Whalen, and this league won’t be the same without her.
Chelsea Gray takes the torch
It was fitting, perhaps, that Whalen’s career came to a close at the hands of Chelsea Gray, one of the league’s next generation of talented point guards. Gray, who has tormented the Lynx throughout their rivalry, once again came up big, finishing with 26 points, five rebounds and six assists. And once again, she came up clutch down the stretch, hitting multiple jumpers in the final few minutes to help the Sparks secure the win. Just as important, though, was that she did it with style, tossing no-look feeds and hitting wicked crossovers. Whalen may be done, but the league is in good hands with Gray taking the torch.
The end of an era
One of the things that makes life so interesting, is you rarely get to decide how certain chapters close. Sometimes they end perfectly, just how you always imagined, but more often they come to an abrupt, unexpected close. So then, maybe this was for the best.
That after three straight years of going toe-to-toe in the playoffs, with each series — including the last two Finals — coming down to a winner-take-all game, the final meeting of the mighty Sparks-Lynx rivalry would be a single-elimination first-round contest.
One more game to settle things, but not in a third straight Finals matchup. No, that would have been too much like a fairy tale. This felt more real, more fitting, in the way that rivalries are supposed to end — not when or how you want them to, but with each team staggering to the finish, striving desperately for that one last win.
