There are times when me default for a game I don’t have a stake in is “OFFENSE!” Other times it’s “Give the fans a home win.”
Both were in play last night. Phoenix v. Dallas was a barnburner until the DT and birthday girl DB took off, while Minnesota and LA gave us the expected arm-wrassling, gut-wrenching game we have come to expect from these two teams. End result – a great night for the league.
Merc v. Wings
ESPN: Diana Taurasi — who else? — helps Mercury move on to second round
When the WNBA schedule turns its page to the playoffs, some players get nervous, some teams get tight.
And rightfully so.
The first two rounds are win or go home. That’s enough pressure over 40 minutes to make up for an entire season.
But Mercury guard Diana Taurasi doesn’t fret. She doesn’t feel that pressure. She doesn’t get nervous.
“It becomes a little bit more fun,” Taurasi said.
Pat Ralph: MERCURY USE OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION TO POWER PAST WINGS
The Ringer: One-and-Done: DeWanna Bonner and the Mercury Eliminated the Wings
Seven things from the Phoenix Mercury’s 101-83 win over the Dallas Wings in the first round of the WNBA playoffs on Tuesday night:
I. With three and a half minutes left in the third quarter of the single-elimination playoff game between the Mercury and the Wings, the Mercury, who were in the process of opening up the game, found themselves in a bit of a pickle. DeWanna Bonner, who had played well all night and whose defense was very responsible for having helped turn a four-point Phoenix lead at halftime into a 12-point lead in that moment, had the ball 34 feet from the basket with only five or so seconds left on the shot clock and (it appeared) no real plan.
AZ Central: Brittney Griner tops Liz Cambage in pair’s 1st duel in WNBA playoffs
“When (Diana) and I run the pick and roll, teams really have to pick one of us to defend,” Griner said. “You can’t be at the point of the screen and get to me while I’m rolling.”
For years, Griner has imposed her 6-9 frame on the best centers in the WNBA. But this season, when the 6-8 Cambage made her return to the WNBA after a four-year hiatus, Griner was forced to go up against a player whose size matched her own.
WNBAInsidr: Wings Exit Postseason, Look To Future
“I think our team really battled,” said interim head coach Taj McWilliams-Franklin. “Phoenix played out of their minds and had some great shooting from their big three and they really carried them throughout the game.
“Our players took a hit, kept going, kept pushing, and we’re really proud of the future of the Dallas Wings.”
Dallas News: Uncertain offseason awaits for Dallas Wings after falling to Phoenix Mercury in WNBA playoffs
Sparks v. Lynx
ESPN: L.A. wins, Lindsay Whalen retires — and rivalry might never be the same
As the Lynx and Sparks were preparing to write the latest and likely final chapter in their riveting rivalry with yet another do-or-die elimination game, Nneka Ogwumike felt something odd in the Los Angeles locker room, and it had nothing to do with the mononucleosis that has drained her since last month.
Despite the fact that Los Angeles and Minnesota were about to play a winner-take-all game for the fourth straight postseason, the Sparks locker room was calm as can be.
“It was kind of chill,” Ogwumike said.
LA Times: Sparks win rematch of last two WNBA Finals, ousting the Lynx to advance to another one-game playoff
Tyler Berry at High post Hoops: NO HOLLYWOOD ENDING FOR THE DEFENDING CHAMPIONS
Ben at HPH: Takeaways: Sparks on to Washington, Lindsay Whalen’s last game, Lynx look to future
Tamryn: The ascent, summit and decline of the Minnesota Lynx
Star-Tribune: Lynx’s Season Comes to an End
Canis Hoopus: Eliminated: Lynx Lose in LA 75-68
.com: From Lindsay Whalen, With Love: A Letter
Check out High Post’s podcast – game reviews and previews.
Swish Appeal: Analysis: How the Mercury and Sparks won their first-round playoff games
Up Next:
ESPN: Win or go home? How about win … pack and head to airport because: Phoenix Mercury meet Connecticut Sun once again in WNBA second-round playoff elimination game
Before the D.C game flashback: The Thibaults on Blake’s Jump Around podcast talked all things hoops, Mystics, Whalen, etc.
Washington City Paper: Kristi Toliver Is the Veteran Force Fueling the Mystics
“I feel like at any big point of the game, we’re always looking to her for the answers and she has them,” says Elena Delle Donne.
Other stuff
’cause it’s all about the swag: The shirts you need to show off your WNBA fandom during the playoffs
And, apparently, the kicks: The Nike Air Swoopes II, WNBA legend Sheryl Swoopes’ signature shoe, is back on the market (Hello: D-Wade offers to pay fine for WNBA player who wore his shoes) (Also: Meet Tamara Young, The WNBA’s Biggest Sneakerhead)
A fun read: WNBA coaches: What Nicki Collen, Dan Hughes, Brian Agler bring to their respective teams
Player’s Tribune, Allie Quigley: The 7 Best Shooters in the WNBA Playoffs. Period.
I don’t have a lot of memories of my dad.
Life is sort of cruel that way — what we remember and what we forget. But my dad, he died of cancer when I was seven, and it’s just one of those things: I remember what he looked like, and what he sounded like. I remember that he used to play outside with us a lot. I remember always being in the gym with him (he was a coach and a school teacher), and how much he loved sports. But specific memories have this way of feeling just out of reach.
When he died, my siblings — my older brother, Ryan, my younger brother, Jake, and my younger sister, Sam — and I started to come together a lot more as a group. I think our dad passing away really made us understand how, in some ways, we were all we had. How we were the only ones who could ever “get” what we’d lost, and what it meant for us to cope. One of the biggest ways that we did that was by playing sports with each other. First, you know, because I think that was one of our main associations with our dad — the closest we had to a full memory. But then also I think because it was almost this, like….. whole other universe. Sports became a sanctuary for us, from feeling bad about things, and from feeling alone in the world.
Forbes: Can The WNBA’s Many Stars Defy What The Numbers Say About The WNBA Playoffs?
The Guardian: How WNBA players fought back against the Twitter trolls
And: WNBA player calls out airplane seatmate for racist text message
Lotta this going on, no? The Undefeated: ‘Get back into the kitchen’: A WNBA roundtable on sexism in basketball (You know what they say, “The Stronger Women Get, the More Men Love Football”)
Check this out from Sports Illustrated: WNBA Media Roundtable: Examining Coverage of the League and Forecasting Its Future
With the WNBA playoffs starting on Tuesday, it felt like an interesting time to examine the league as a whole and how it’s covered by major publications, as well as hit on hot-button topics that have cropped up during the regular season. Keeping that in mind, The Crossover spoke with members of the media about their connection to the WNBA, how to improve it and more.
In answering the questions, members of this three-person panel were told to provide responses as short or long as they wanted. (These answers have been edited for clarity.)
THE PANEL:
• Meredith Minkow, Social media, Bleacher Report
• Richard Deitsch, Media writer, The Athletic
• Natalie Weiner, Staff writer, SB Nation
The Ringer: The WNBA Needs Liz Cambage, but She May Not Need It also: Liz Cambage tells us 5 ways the WNBA is failing its players
Speaking of being needed: Liberty Wrap Up WNBA Season On The Road Without Knowing What Home They’ll Be Returning To
Hashtag Basketball: The Liberty’s Lost Season
On The Banks Episode #8 With Rutgers Women’s Basketball Alumna & WNBA’s Erica Wheeler
The State: A’ja Wilson caps off one of the greatest rookie seasons in WNBA history
Speaking of which: How special is the 2018 WNBA draft class? An in-depth look
WATN? Lindsey Harding the latest to make her mark in the NBA
NCAA
YES. NCAA coaches McCallie, Legette-Jack plan for mental health awareness. I’m intrigued to see if they address some of the social factors that can impact an athletes mental health – misogyny, racism, homophobia etc. For example: I’m a lesbian basketball player. Hateful comments are pushing people like me out of sports.
Being an openly lesbian athlete is tough — and that’s an understatement. I don’t just have to be confident in my ball-handling and shooting skills. I have to work up the confidence to be unapologetically me, even when I’m targeted for who I am. I have to work twice as hard to focus on the court because I know I’m going to be treated differently than my teammates in the locker room because I’m a lesbian.
About eight in 10 LGBTQ youth are not out to their coaches. I was, and as a sophomore, there were many games I couldn’t play because my coach ordered the girls on my team to wear dresses on game day. He knew I wouldn’t wear one, and he didn’t let me play because of it.
Congrats: The Blodgett era highlights Maine Basketball Hall of Fame inductions
Yeah! 103-Year-Old Former Women’s Basketball Player Gets Surprise Visit From Team
International (No, my bags AREN’T packed yet. But soooooon!)
FIBA: Where will Japan finish, who will be their MVP & breakout Performer?