To no surprise, former UConn star Briana Stewart was recently named the 2018 WNBA MVP. Stewart, who turns 24 on Monday, has averaged 21.8 points, 8.4 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.4 blocks. She is going down as one of the best female hoops players ever after winning the NCAA title all four years at UConn. She was also named Associated Press National Player of the Year as a sophomore, junior and senior. And she won WNBA Rookie of the Year in 2016 after being the No. 1 pick. Here’s a look at two WNBA playoff games on Tuesday. Both series are best-of-5. Check back for WNBA betting odds on gameday.
When: Tuesday, 10 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
With the championship experience of the Minnesota Lynx and L.A. Sparks out of the picture, just one (Phoenix) of the four teams that reached the WNBA semifinals has won a championship in the last eight years. By contrast to the Lynx, whose roster had combined for nearly 12,000 career playoff minutes entering this season — the most in WNBA history — this year’s other three semifinalists besides the Mercury have less than 8,000 career playoff minutes between them.
No one has more regular-season experience than the Storm’s Sue Bird, who is the WNBA’s all-time leader in games played. Seattle, the league’s best team in the regular season, opened with a 91-87 home win over the Mercury. Natasha Howard recorded a playoff career-high with 20 points for Seattle. The Storm hit 13 threes, tying a franchise playoff record. Stewart notched a playoff career-high in points (28) and all-time in three pointers made (6).
Stewart is in her third year in the league and ranked in the top 10 in scoring, blocked shots, steals and rebounding. She also led the WNBA with 22 games of 20 or more points. She’s one of 10 different players to win the award in the past 10 years, and the second member of the Storm to be awarded the league MVP. This season Stewart set career highs in field goal percentage with 52.9 percent, 3-point percentage with 41.5 percent and free throw percentage with 82 percent. She led the Storm in points with 742, and has the most points in the WNBA in the past three seasons combined with 2,019.
Phoenix star Diana Taurasi, also a former UConn great, is already the WNBA’s all-time leading scorer in the regular season. Now she holds the playoff record. She broke the mark in Sunday’s loss. She entered the game seven points behind Tamika Catchings on the all-time list. Catchings needed 68 games to score 1,141 points, while Taurasi was playing in her 55th. Cynthia Cooper (23.3 PPG) and Angel McCoughtry (22.8 PPG) are the only two players who have a higher career playoff scoring average than Taurasi (21.0 PPG) among women who have played at least 10 postseason contests.
Phoenix has won three WNBA championships with Taurasi on the roster, with the nine-time All-Star winning the Finals MVP twice.
WNBA Betting Picks & Predictions of the Week – August 27th
My #WNBA power rankings for who’s left in the #WNBAPlayoffs: #1 @seattlestorm #2 @AtlantaDream #3 @PhoenixMercury #4 @WashMystics pic.twitter.com/DubfCQdfpE
— WNBA Hoops (@wnbahoops) August 24, 2018
Washington at Atlanta
When: Tuesday, 8 p.m. ET (ESPN2) It’s the second game of this semifinal series, with Washington taking the opener 87-84 on Sunday in Atlanta. Star Elena Delle Donne had 32 points and 13 rebounds, and Ariel Atkins added 15 points for the Mystics. They hit all 20 of their free-throw attempts. Washington is trying to advance past the semifinals for the first time in its 21 seasons. Washington is averaging 15.3 points per game off of opponent’s turnovers this season. The Mystics have at least 10 points off of turnovers in all but two games this with a season-high 27 at Chicago on June 22. Mike Thibault is the winningest coach in the WNBA and the first to reach 300 career wins, a feat he accomplished when Washington defeated Los Angeles on July 7. In her 10th WNBA season, Kristi Toliver is currently averaging near-career highs in points per game (13.7), field goal percentage (.427) and three-point percentage (.346). Elizabeth Williams finished with 15 points and 14 rebounds for Atlanta, which never led. Alex Bentley’s 3 pulled the Dream within three points midway through the fourth quarter and Tiffany Hayes scored six straight points for the game’s final points in the closing minute. The Dream were only the second team in WNBA history to finish with four players with 20+ points (24-Angel McCoughtry, 23-Jessica Breland, 21-Tiffany Hayes, 21-Renee Montgomery) when they did it against the Washington Mystics on July 11, 2018. Averaging 17.2 points, Hayes has topped 2,500 career points over her 6+ year career in the WNBA. The standout guard has 2,904 points so far. She has 12 20+ games in 2018 and 39 in her career. Montgomery tied the WNBA record with eight three-pointers in one game against New York (8/12). McCoughtry has been lost for the season due to injury. Under coach Nikki Collen, Atlanta outscored opponents by 7.3 points per game in August (tied for fourth in the WNBA). On the defensive end, the Dream led the league in forced turnovers per game (14.0), blocks per game (6.88) and opponents’ three-point field goal percentage (30.0). Atlanta averaged the third-most points per game (91.1) and finished fourth in overall field goal percentage (47.4).Phoenix at Seattle
When: Tuesday, 10 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
With the championship experience of the Minnesota Lynx and L.A. Sparks out of the picture, just one (Phoenix) of the four teams that reached the WNBA semifinals has won a championship in the last eight years. By contrast to the Lynx, whose roster had combined for nearly 12,000 career playoff minutes entering this season — the most in WNBA history — this year’s other three semifinalists besides the Mercury have less than 8,000 career playoff minutes between them.
No one has more regular-season experience than the Storm’s Sue Bird, who is the WNBA’s all-time leader in games played. Seattle, the league’s best team in the regular season, opened with a 91-87 home win over the Mercury. Natasha Howard recorded a playoff career-high with 20 points for Seattle. The Storm hit 13 threes, tying a franchise playoff record. Stewart notched a playoff career-high in points (28) and all-time in three pointers made (6).
Stewart is in her third year in the league and ranked in the top 10 in scoring, blocked shots, steals and rebounding. She also led the WNBA with 22 games of 20 or more points. She’s one of 10 different players to win the award in the past 10 years, and the second member of the Storm to be awarded the league MVP. This season Stewart set career highs in field goal percentage with 52.9 percent, 3-point percentage with 41.5 percent and free throw percentage with 82 percent. She led the Storm in points with 742, and has the most points in the WNBA in the past three seasons combined with 2,019.
Phoenix star Diana Taurasi, also a former UConn great, is already the WNBA’s all-time leading scorer in the regular season. Now she holds the playoff record. She broke the mark in Sunday’s loss. She entered the game seven points behind Tamika Catchings on the all-time list. Catchings needed 68 games to score 1,141 points, while Taurasi was playing in her 55th. Cynthia Cooper (23.3 PPG) and Angel McCoughtry (22.8 PPG) are the only two players who have a higher career playoff scoring average than Taurasi (21.0 PPG) among women who have played at least 10 postseason contests.
Phoenix has won three WNBA championships with Taurasi on the roster, with the nine-time All-Star winning the Finals MVP twice.
