Weekly Roundup: The Vagaries of Momentum, Chelsea Gray’s Magic, and the Wings Doing Their Best Sun Impression
Breaking down the highlights from the first round of the WNBA playoffs
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Momentum in sports is a funny thing. When it’s on your side, you almost feel invincible. However, it can flip to your opponent in an instant, and when it does, it seems like Murphy’s Law is at work.
All signs pointed to the Connecticut Sun closing out its first-round series against the Dallas Wings on Sunday afternoon at Mohegan Sun Arena. Entering Game 2, the Sun had won 10 of their previous dozen games - half of those wins were by more than 15 points, and the only blemishes during that stretch were a pair of three-point losses to second-place Chicago. They had just walloped Dallas in Game 1, 93-68. However, the Wings flipped the script and returned the favor with a season-saving 89-79 road win, a final score that belied just how much Dallas dominated the contest. A change that saw Isabelle Harrison replace Teaira McCowan in the starting lineup helped Dallas jump out to a 22-7 first-quarter advantage from which the Sun never recovered. Now the Wings, winners of three of their five meetings against Connecticut this season, host a series-deciding game tomorrow night, thanks to this season’s 2-1 first-round playoff format.
Chicago was reliable in close-game situations this season. Tack on a lineup with three Finals MVPs plus veterans Courtney Vandersloot and Allie Quigley, and Chicago seemed poised to take a 1-0 lead over New York with a 91-85 lead and 3:32 remaining in Game 1. Then, this happened.
It keyed a 13-0 Liberty run to close out Game 1. Advantage New York. Then, Kahleah Copper went down with an ankle injury during Chicago’s practice on Friday, prompting Sky coach James Wade to insist that she and the team were “fine.” Boy, was he right. Chicago won in convincing fashion, 100-62, the biggest blowout in WNBA playoff history. Copper led all scorers with 20 points. Advantage Chicago. It’s difficult to pick against a team that just won by almost 40 points, but tonight’s winner-take-all game takes place at New York’s Barclays Center.
And then there’s Seattle and Las Vegas. The Aces eliminated a depleted Phoenix squad in emphatic fashion, compiling one of the best offensive performances in league history in their 117-80 series-clinching win. In a series that many expected to go the distance, the Storm posted its best offensive rating of the season (138.6 points per 100 possessions) in Game 2 against the league’s best defense, avoiding a winner-take-all game in DC. To what extent can the Storm and Aces ride the momentum from their first-round sweeps? We’ll find out when they meet in the semifinals starting on Sunday.
Player of the Week: Chelsea Gray
I had a difficult time deciding between Breanna Stewart and Chelsea Gray for player of the week. Both led their respective teams to first-round series sweeps, and they each averaged 22 points and six assists over two games. What clinched it for me was Gray’s offensive efficiency. The Aces point guard scored the same number of points as Stewie on 12 fewer field-goal attempts. Gray’s mind-boggling 75% field-goal percentage and 76.9% (10-for-13) three-point percentage last week translates to a true shooting percentage of 101.1%.
On Saturday night, she helped engineer one of the (if not the) greatest offensive performances by a team in league history. In addition to their 117 points, tied for the most in a non-overtime playoff game, the Aces’ 23 three-pointers obliterated the previous WNBA single-game record of 18. For her part, Gray knocked down seven triples (tied for third in WNBA playoff history) and assisted on three of them. Las Vegas finished Game 2 with an effective field goal percentage of 82%, a new WNBA single-game record. Gray contributed to this mark by shooting 9-for-11 from the field, including 7-for-8 from long distance. That translates to an effective field goal percentage of 113.6%, tying a league record among those with at least 25 points. Gray’s knack for reading defenses and anticipating movement was on full display. I mean, just look at this video capture from our own Richard Cohen.
In what isn’t the best news for Seattle or any other team in the Aces’ championship path, Gray is playing her best basketball of the season. "You want to peak at the right time,” Gray said. “And for me individually, that's what I'm feeling."
Stat of the Week: Out-Connecticut-ing Connecticut
One of the first stats of the week this season featured Connecticut’s dominance on the offensive glass. At the time (late May), the Sun were grabbing 38.7% of their opponents’ misses, an offensive rebounding rate that would have ranked second all time had the season ended then. While that figure dipped to 31.6% by season’s end, it was still the highest single-season offensive rebounding rate since the 2015 Atlanta Dream. So, it’s a bit of a full-circle moment that we’re talking about offensive rebounding rate again, except this time it’s another team giving Connecticut a taste of its own medicine.
This season, teams have posted an offensive rebounding rate of at least 30% against Connecticut just five times. Three of those games belong to Dallas (all wins), including Sunday’s 89-79 triumph in Game 2. These additional opportunities have translated into a 51-27 advantage in second-chance points across those three games, including a 23-11 edge on Sunday (the most second-chance points the Sun have yielded this season).
Dallas’ success on the offensive glass isn’t completely unexpected. After all, the Wings boast the league’s top offensive rebounder in McCowan (3.0 per game) and ranked second in offensive rebounding rate during the regular season. It’s nonetheless impressive given how effectively Connecticut cleaned up on the defensive glass all season, leading the W in defensive rebounding rate and ranking fifth all-time.
Granted, several other factors facilitated Dallas’ success against Connecticut on Sunday. Namely, the decision to start Harrison instead of McCowan in Game 2 shored up Dallas’ defense by creating more favorable matchups. The result was a seven-point Connecticut first quarter and limiting the Sun to 47 points through three quarters. However, Dallas’ ability to “out-Connecticut” the Sun on the offensive glass has been a recurring theme that could help determine whether we will witness the first playoff series victory in Wings history Wednesday night.
The case of the missing pancakes
Copper expressed her frustration with DoorDash yesterday after the food delivery service suddenly canceled her order from a Brooklyn restaurant.
Now, Twitter can be a wasteland at times, but the conspiracy theories speculating who was responsible for Copper’s plight were absolutely hilarious. Some believed Calvin, the DoorDash driver and possible Liberty fan, ate the meal himself. After all, it wouldn’t be the first time a professional basketball player from Chicago had issues with food delivery during the postseason. Others believed Calvin to be an alias for Sophie Cunningham. Whatever happened to Copper’s pancakes will have to remain one of the great mysteries in WNBA lore.
Fortunately, this story has a happy ending. Much to Copper’s delight, Denny’s stepped up and offered her pancakes on the house.
WNBA schedule this week (All times Eastern)
Here is a complete listing of this week’s games, start times, and where you can catch the action.
Her Hoop Stats content in case you missed it
Dice it Up is back! Dano Mataya and Ice Young discussed Ice’s first season as a color commentator for the Connecticut Sun and previewed this week’s pair of series-deciding games.
On the latest episode of Courtside, Gabe Ibrahim and Christy Winters-Scott broke down all four first-round series and predicted which teams will advance.
It’s awards season! In last week’s WNBA Dissected, Richard Cohen offered his picks for every year-end WNBA accolade, from Executive of the Year to Most Valuable Player.
Calvin Wetzel broke down film of how Seattle’s Ezi Magbegor has developed into an impact player on both ends of the floor.
Other recommended content
Elena Delle Donne questioned whether she would be in severe pain for the rest of her life after suffering three herniated discs in 2019. For The Athletic, David Aldridge chronicled the mental and physical demands involved in Delle Donne’s road back to the WNBA.
In Part 1 of the WNBA’s four-part Undefeatable campaign, Mark Schindler spoke with Dallas’ Isabelle Harrison about her superb footwork, the importance of advocating for yourself, and the positive impact she’s had on fans through her social media presence.
The New York Times’ Victor Mather analyzed how Sabrina Ionescu elevated her game to another level this season.
For FiveThirtyEight, Jenn Hatfield and Calvin Wetzel explored the increased role that international players have played in the WNBA this season.
For USA Today, Nancy Armour reported on how women are underrepresented in scientific research and how the gender gap is even more pronounced in sports science.
Trivia question of the week
First, here’s the answer to last week’s trivia question:
For a second consecutive season, Brittney Sykes led the WNBA in steals per game this year. Who is the last player to top the W in steals per game in two straight seasons?
Answer: Sancho Lyttle (2015 and 2016)
And now, here’s this week’s question:
Who was the last WNBA team to lose its first game in a postseason and then go on to win the title that same year?
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