Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Plus, who emerged victorious on Tuesday night, where teams stand heading into the postseason, and the controversy surrounding WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert.
Good morning WNBA! There’s just over a week left in the regular season, and as the postseason nears, only one playoff spot is still up for grabs — the 8th seed, which the Chicago Sky, Atlanta Dream, and Washington Mystics are still all in contention for. There are some seeding changes that could take place prior to the season’s conclusion (the Connecticut Sun and Minnesota Lynx are in a tight race for the #2 seed, for example), but for the most part, we have a clear picture of who’s in and who’s out heading into the 2024 postseason.
We’ll dive into tonight’s three-game WNBA slate, but first, let’s take a look at last night’s game results, and yesterday’s other major storyline.
The Minnesota Lynx defeated the Atlanta Dream (76-64). Four Lynx players scored in double-figures as the team secured its 11th win in 12 games. Kayla McBride led the way with 15 points, Napheesa Collier and Bridget Carleton each added 14, and Courtney Williams posted 12 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists.
The New York Liberty beat the Dallas Wings (105-91). Breanna Stewart exploded for 27 points, Jonquel Jones added 19, and Sabrina Ionescu finished with a 14-point, 11-assist double-double. Leonie Fiebich added 16 points on 5-7 shooting off the bench. For the Dream, Arike Ogunbowale led with 23 points, and Natasha Howard added 21 points.
The Connecticut Sun blew out the Los Angeles Sparks (86-66). Marina Mabrey led the way with 26 points on 9-13 shooting (including 6-8 from three) in that one, while Brionna Jones added 19 points on 9-13 shooting. Alyssa Thomas recorded 12 assists and 11 rebounds. For the losers, Rickea Jackson posted a team-high 16 points on 7-11 shooting, while Azura Stevens grabbed 17 rebounds.
Still, likely the biggest story from yesterday wasn’t anything that happened on the court — it was commissioner Cathy Engelbert’s initial failure to denounce racism and bigotry when given the opportunity to do so in an interview on CNBC on Monday. That led to a slew of players, including Breanna Stewart, Kelsey Plum, Chelsea Gray, and Alysha Clark, to call the commissioner out, and for the WNBPA to issue a strong statement condemning the increased hate and harassment players have faced this season.
Late Tuesday night, Engelbert tweeted: “To be clear, there is absolutely no place for hate or racism of any kind in the WNBA or anywhere else.” Is that follow-up enough to quell players’ understandable disappointment with the initial lack of condemnation, or is more coming? Only time will tell.
For now, here’s tonight’s three-game WNBA schedule.
The Indiana Fever vs the Las Vegas Aces at 7pm ET
The big question for this one is whether or not A’ja Wilson will be available to play. Wilson, the runaway favorite for MVP, missed Sunday’s game against the Liberty with an ankle sprain, but is currently not listed on the injury report for Wednesday’s matchup. The Aces had won four consecutive games before narrowly dropping Sunday’s contest, but they’ve generally looked a lot better these past few weeks than they did earlier this season. Kelsey Plum, in particular, has seemingly found a rhythm, posting 27 and 25 points in her last two games.
Meanwhile, Indiana has been the league’s second-best team since the Olympic break, winners of 8 of their last 10 games. Caitlin Clark has won Eastern Conference Player of the Week for three consecutive weeks, and Kelsey Mitchell is playing the best basketball of her career. Aliyah Boston is fresh off a 30-point outing in an overtime win against the Dream — the highest scoring game of her professional career. This game will feature an astounding seven 2024 WNBA All-Stars, and two contending teams battling for playoff positioning.
The Washington Mystics vs the Chicago Sky at 8pm ET
We can call this one the battle for the 8th seed. With last night’s Dream loss, the Sky now hold a one-game lead for the final playoff spot with just five games left to play. They’re without Angel Reese for the rest of the season, who had successful wrist surgery yesterday, but importantly have Chennedy Carter back in the lineup. Carter exploded for 28 points and 6 assists in Sunday’s Sky win over the Wings, and appears to be back in form after missing a few weeks with illness.
The Mystics, who started the year 0-12, have won 5 of their last 7 games and now sit two games back of the Sky for the 8th seed. A win would pull them within one game, while a loss would nearly eliminate them from contention, so this is a big one if Washington wants to see postseason action (and that’s a big if, considering they may prefer better draft odds instead).
The Seattle Storm vs the Los Angeles Sparks at 10pm ET
The Sparks are out of the playoff race, and they’ve already secured the league’s best odds for the #1 pick in the 2025 draft (also known as the Paige Bueckers sweepstakes). So, these last few games are effectively inconsequential, but nonetheless an opportunity for Rickea Jackson to continue showing out — and for the rest of the roster to remain competitive.
The Storm currently sit in fifth place — one game behind the Aces in the WNBA standings — but have time to make up some ground and secure home-court int he first round of the postseason. They’ve won just 4 of their last 10 games, however, and haven’t been able to string together consecutive games since the Olympic break. Tonight would be a good opportunity to secure an easy win and increase their chances at the #4 seed.
Updated WNBA Standings
Here’s where things stand with about five games left to play in the WNBA season.
New York Liberty (30-6)
Minnesota Lynx (26-9)
Connecticut Sun (26-10)
Las Vegas Aces (22-13)
Seattle Storm (21-14)
Indiana Fever (19-17)
Phoenix Mercury (17-19)
Chicago Sky (13-23)
Atlanta Dream (12-24)
Washington Mystics (11-24)
Dallas Wings (9-27)
Los Angeles Sparks (7-29)
How to watch tonight’s WNBA games
All three games (Aces-Fever, Mystics-Sky, Storm-Sparks) will be on WNBA League Pass and on their team’s local broadcasts. Additionally, Aces-Fever and Storm-Sparks will be on NBA TV.
