With the opening round of the WNBA playoffs being a best-of-3 series, the Indiana Fever and the Seattle Storm needed to win at home to keep their seasons alive.
They did just that, with No. 6-seed Indiana beating the No. 3-seed Atlanta Dream 77-60, and No. 7-seed Seattle coming out on top 86-83 over the No. 2-seed Las Vegas Aces.
Each team found a way to earn a win in equally challenging ways. Here’s more on how Indiana and Seattle got the job done:
The Fever remained in control during all of Game 2. They never trailed, led by as many as 24 points and were never outscored during any individual quarter. With their season hanging in the balance, Kelsey Mitchell and Aliyah Boston played like the stars they are.
Mitchell scored 19 points and Boston had 15, along with five rebounds, in the win. Indiana wasn’t just a two-player operation; they had Natasha Howard, who scored 12 points, and Aerial Powers, who came off the bench and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds.
Atlanta didn’t just bow out in this one. They were within single digits for most of the first half and midway through the third quarter, but the combination of an inability to score, grab boards or get stops means they have to go back to Atlanta and attempt to close things out there.
The Fever have continued bucking the odds, and Tuesday was one of the best examples of this. Indiana has no quit and Game 3 is set up to be a great matchup between these two teams.
The Aces were ahead 69-61 entering the fourth quarter, well on their way to winning Game 2. Then Seattle stormed back, going on a 17-4 run to end the game—and extend the series.
The Storm had plenty of heroes in this game. Skylar Diggins scored a game-high 26 points, including the final basket to seal the game. Nneka Ogwumike had a double-double with 24 points and 10 rebounds, and rookie Dominique Malonga came up big, scoring the game-winning free throw along with 11 points off the bench.
This was an amazing display of teamwork that ended Las Vegas’ 17-game win streak.
While the Aces lost, they got the kind of production they wanted from their core.
Jackie Young had 25 points, A’ja Wilson ended the night with 21 points and Jewell Loyd contributed 13 points off the bench. Las Vegas just didn’t execute well enough down the stretch, missing bunnies near the rim, committing late turnovers and struggling to grab offensive rebounds sealed their fate.
Perhaps the top seeds still win both first-round series, but Game 2 was a reminder that all remaining teams have what it takes to win. The Fever did everything right and, when everyone is on top of their game, they can dominate the Dream. The Storm dug themselves into quite a hole, but they have enough talent to overwhelm even a red-hot Aces team.
Now we get to see what these matchups look like when everyone has their season on the line. Both Game 3s are set for Thursday, and if those games are as competitive as these were, WNBA fans will be in for a treat.
