The international presence is also strong with Canada and Australia leading the way with three players each.
Round one of the 2023 WNBA playoffs has started and a total of 95 players are participating in the eight-team format. There are 19 foreign-born players represented in this contingent and 42 different college programs from 13 conferences. All but 11 players are from Division I schools.
UConn, Notre Dame, Maryland, South Carolina, Baylor and Oregon represent the six schools with the most players. Canada, Australia, China, France and Hungary are the countries with the most players in the playoffs this year.
UConn has a total of nine players in the playoffs with multiple players on the same team:
Breanna Stewart, Stefanie Dolson (New York)
Tiffany Hayes, Olivia Nelson-Ododa (Connecticut)
Lou Lopez Sénéchal, Crystal Dangerfield (Dallas)
Dorka Juhász, Napheesa Collier (Minnesota)
Kiah Stokes (Las Vegas)
Notre Dame is a close second with seven players gracing the hardwood during the playoffs:
Australia: Alanna Smith, Cayla George, Rebecca Allen
The playoffs started on Wednesday with Las Vegas defeating the Chicago Sky and clinching Game 1. The Connecticut Sun defeated the Minnesota Lynx in Game 1 in the other matchup from the evening.
The action resumes on Friday when the Washington Mystics take on the Liberty and the Atlanta Dream battle it out with the Dallas Wings.
UConn and Notre Dame are among the schools with the most players in the WNBA playoffs.
The 2023 WNBA playoffs have started with Las Vegas taking Game 1 against the Chicago Sky and the Connecticut Sun dominating the Minnesota Lynx. The rest of the league will be in action on Friday.
The playoffs feature 95 players participating in the eight-team format with all but 11 coming from Division I programs. The action consists of representation from 42 different schools in 13 conferences. While some players have reunited to share the court once again, others have gone from teammates to competitors.
The first round of the playoffs is a best-of-three series with the top team from each matchup advancing to the semifinals. The semifinals and finals are a best-of-five series.
Here are the six schools with the most players in the playoffs:
This season has been the longest to date with 40 games on the schedule.
The 2023 WNBA regular season is over and the first round of the playoff bracket is set. The road to the championship will begin on Wednesday with a best-of-three series format to determine the four teams that will advance to the semifinals.
The two highest seeds, the Las Vegas Aces and New York Liberty, are paired up against the two lowest seeds, the Chicago Sky and Washington Mystics, in the first round. The Mystics beat the Liberty in a buzzer-beating performance on Sunday and are heading into their matchup on Friday with a healthy roster and confidence.
This season has been the longest to date with 40 games on the schedule. Players are understandably tired, so stamina and coaching decisions will be a huge deciding factor in which teams advance to the semifinals.
Here are my predictions for which teams will advance:
The AP WNBA awards are out and something don’t make sense.
The WNBA regular season slate ended Sunday, giving players and coaches one final opportunity to state their case for why they should be considered among the league’s best talent.
Following the end of the season, a 12-member media group from the Associated Press votes on awards such as Most Valuable Player (MVP), Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY), Coach of the Year (COY), and more. These awards precede the league awards that will be announced during post-season play, with the coveted league MVP award announced on September 26.
Here’s what the AP voters absolutely got right and wrong for its 2023 WNBA awards:
The eight teams will begin postseason play on Wednesday with their sights set on advancing to the WNBA Finals.
The stage is set and the final team to make the 2023 WNBA playoffs has secured its spot. The eight teams will begin postseason play on Wednesday with their sights set on advancing to the WNBA Finals.
The first round of the playoffs is a best-of-three series. The semifinal round consists of a best-of-five series with the finals mirroring the semifinal format.
While the New York Liberty and Las Vegas Aces clinched their spots early, teams like the Atlanta Dream and Washington Mystics snagged some of the last spots in postseason play.
Here are the eight teams vying for a spot in the finals:
The WNBA playoffs begin on Sept. 13 as eight teams will compete for a spot in the finals.
Five teams have clinched a 2023 WNBA playoff spot with just a week remaining in the regular season. The playoffs begin on Sept. 13 and eight teams will compete for a spot in the finals.
Thus far the Indiana Fever, Seattle Storm and Phoenix Mercury have officially been eliminated. There are three more spots available in the playoffs and four teams are battling it out including the Atlanta Dream, Washington Mystics, Los Angeles Sparks and Chicago Sky.
The regular season ends on Sept. 10 with player awards being announced starting on Sept. 11. The first round of the playoffs is a best-of-three series. The semifinal round consists of a best-of-five series with the finals mirroring the semifinal format.
The five teams that have already qualified for the playoffs:
Sue Bird got the sendoff she deserved from Storm fans after her final game
Sue Bird definitely didn’t go out the way she wanted to.
The Seattle Storm couldn’t eke out just one more win against the Aces in Game 4. Breanna Stewart’s 42 points weren’t enough to overcome 31 points and 10 assists from Chelsea Gray along with A’ja Wilson’s 23 points and 13 rebounds. The star-studded performances were everywhere on Tuesday night.
But when the final buzzer sounded, at least for a moment, it didn’t feel like any of those numbers mattered anymore. The series was over, and so was Sue Bird’s career.
Bird announced that this would be her final season at the beginning of the year, no matter where it ended. She didn’t win her final game, but she may have gotten something a bit sweeter.
After the final buzzer when things were all said and done and Bird, waved goodbye to her fans.
“It has been my honor to play for this franchise, for these fans. I mean, I don’t know what else to say.”
What a moment, man. A very well-deserved sendoff for a future Hall of Famer. Soon after, everyone showed Bird love, from some of her peers to her fans and everything in between.
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On Sunday, the WNBA is blessing us with one of the best playoff series that we might see on a hardwood court — anytime, anywhere in any league.
The Las Vegas Aces are suiting up at home against the Seattle Storm and this is going to be one for the ages.
The stakes are there, obviously. This is a rematch from the 2020 WNBA Finals in which the Storm had their way with the Aces. But this is a chance for revenge for Vegas as they try to make it back to the Finals.
Put all of that aside for a second, though. We need to recognize how much talent is actually going to be on the court for this series. A handful of the best remaining players in the playoffs will be on the court here.
There will be 3 MVPs on the court between A’ja Wilson (2020), Breanna Stewart (2018) and Tina Charles (2012). On top of that, Seattle collectively has 29 All-Star appearances and 23 All-WNBA appearances between Sue Bird, Jewel Lloyd, Stewart and Charles.
The Aces aren’t slouching much, either. They’ve got current All-Stars on their roster in Wilson along with Jackie Young and Kelsey Plum. All 3 of them will likely be All-WNBA selections this year as well. Let’s also not forget that Stewart and Wilson are MVP front runners this year.
This is going to be epic, y’all. We couldn’t have asked for a better series heading into the Finals. Don’t miss this one. You’ll be missing history if you do.
The Tip-Off
Some NBA goodness from around the USA TODAY Sports network.
Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports
Speaking of Sunday’s matchup, our Cole Huff put together an excellent preview of the Semi-Finals to get you brushed up on everything you need to know with betting odds, analysis and more. The playoffs have been epic already, but they’re getting ready to get even better.
“Each series provided its hint of suspicion, including Vegas nearly trailing an undermanned Phoenix Mercury in the fourth quarter of Game 1, the Sky and Sun surviving win-or-go-home games on the road, and the Storm putting away a sneaky longshot-favorite in Elena Delle Donne and the Mystics.
But when the dust settled, all four of the higher-seeded teams were left standing. And as we roll into the semis, the action is only going to get better.”
That’s all, folks. Enjoy the basketball this weekend!
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The Dallas Wings were eliminated by the Connecticut Sun in the WNBA playoffs on Wednesday, ending Satou Sabally’s season prematurely.
A Satou Sabally vs. Ruthy Hebard matchup in the second round of the WNBA playoffs was not meant to be, as Sabally’s Dallas Wings were defeated by the Connecticut Sun on Wednesday by a score of 73-58, eliminating them from postseason competition.
The Wings shot an abysmal 20-55 from the field in the loss, with Marina Mabrey (20 points) and Veronic Burton (10) the only players in double-figures.
Sabally played 20 minutes and finished with six points, three assists, and one rebound, closing out an injury-riddled season where she only managed to appear in 11 regular season games, averaging 11.3 points and 4.8 rebounds.
Dallas and New York both getting eliminated on back-to-back days means the only Oregon alumni still fighting for a WNBA championship is Hebard, whose Chicago squad is going to face Connecticut while they look to become the first team to repeat as WNBA champions since the Los Angeles Sparks did it back in 2001 and 2002.
The Connecticut Sun will meet the Dallas Wings in Game 3 of their best of three series on Wednesday night from the College Park Center.
The Connecticut Sun will meet the Dallas Wings in Game 3 of their best of three series on Wednesday night from the College Park Center. The Sun took the first game of the series 93-68 and then the Wings bounced back in Game 2 with an 89-79 win to force a winner or take-all game tonight from Dallas.
Here is everything you need to know to watch or stream the action during this series.
WNBA odds courtesy of Tipico Sportsbook. Odds were last updated Wednesday at 6:25 p.m. ET.
Connecticut Sun (-5.5) vs. Dallas Wings
O/U: 164.5
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