WNBA playoffs start Sunday with 4 games while Aces eye 3-peat
Mercury star Taurasi hints at retirement, Dream's Tina Charles sets 2 records
The WNBA playoffs are set with the Atlanta Dream getting the eighth seed on Thursday night.
The post-season begins Sunday with four best-of-three matchups. The Dream face the top-seeded New York Liberty. The Minnesota Lynx, the No. 2 seed, will host the No. 7 seed Phoenix Mercury while the No. 3 Connecticut Sun will welcome the No. 6 seed Indiana Fever and sensational rookie Caitlin Clark.
The final opening round matchup is the two-time defending champion Las Vegas Aces, the No. 4 seed, hosting the fifth-seeded Seattle Storm.
Las Vegas is trying to become the first team to win three titles in a row since Houston won four straight in the first four seasons of the WNBA, from 1997 to 2000.
The better seeded team will host the first two games of the series with a potential decisive third game to be played at the site of the lower seeded squad.
Three of the eight playoff positions came down to the final day of the regular season.
The final playoff spot came down to the last day of the regular season. Atlanta needed a victory to clinch a spot and the Dream did just that by beating New York 78-67. The Liberty had already clinched the top seed. Connecticut knocked off Chicago 87-54 to secure the No. 3 seed.
WATCH: Clark sets rookie season scoring record:
Taurasi noncommittal about playing future
Diana Taurasi stood in the middle of the court where she won championships and broke records during one of the greatest careers in women's basketball history.
She tried to get out the words out, but Phoenix's fans quickly interrupted.
Taurasi hasn't decided if she will return for a 21st season, making Thursday night's game against Seattle as potentially the final at home in her storied career.
The Storm spoiled Taurasi's night with an 89-70 win, but there's no doubt what playing in Phoenix has meant to the player who has widely been called the best of all time.
"If it is the last time, it felt like the first time," Taurasi said.
The 42-year-old Taurasi finished with nine points on 3-of-9 shooting in 18 minutes, but gained much more in a game that meant little in the WNBA standings with the Mercury locked into a first-round playoff series against Minnesota.
The Mercury played a tribute video before Taurasi addressed the crowd and she lingered on the floor, hugging and taking pictures well after the final buzzer, including a long embrace with Auriemma.
"It's bittersweet in a lot of ways," Taurasi said. "When the season is over, I'll have a better idea of what it looks like for me in the future."
Taurasi has been coy about retirement, remaining noncommittal while hinting it might be right around the corner.
Tina Charles lifts Dream into playoffs
Tina Charles and her Atlanta Dream teammates packed for an extended trip to New York.
They got their wish by reaching the post-season with a 78-67 win over the Liberty on Thursday night to earn the eighth seed. The two teams will meet in the post-season that begins Sunday in New York. Game 2 will be Tuesday night.
"We came here with our bags packed," Charles said. "We knew we'd take care of business."
Charles had a record night to lift the team to the playoffs for the second straight year where they'll face New York again. She finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds, breaking the league records for both career rebounds and double-doubles.
Atlanta came into the game knowing it could clinch a playoff berth win a victory while the Liberty (32-8) had nothing really to play for having already sewn up the No. 1 seed.
The Dream (15-25) came out strong behind Charles, who broke Sylvia Fowles's rebound mark of 4,006 boards a few minutes into the game. She needed three coming into the game to break the record and is now up to 4,014 for her career.
In the third quarter, Charles broke another one of Fowles's league records by getting her 194th career double-double.
A New York native, Charles was honoured before the game as she was inducted into the city's Basketball Hall of Fame along with nine other former players and coaches. Her Dream teammates were on the court cheering her on as she was announced as part of the class.
Charles is the only WNBA player with 7,000 points and 4,000 rebounds in her career. She's second on the career scoring list behind only Diana Taurasi.
With files from John Marshall & Doug Feinberg, AP
