The Phoenix Mercury are headed to the WNBA Finals. The Indiana Fever and Las Vegas Aces will play one more game to determine which team will face the Mercury.
No. 4 seed Phoenix overcame a 14-point deficit to eliminate the top-seeded Minnesota Lynx with an 86-81 victory on Sunday and advance to the Finals for the first time since 2021.
The Lynx dominated the standings throughout the season but lost back-to-back games in Phoenix, including a controversial ending to Friday’s Game 3, when star Napheesa Collier was injured. Collier missed Sunday’s deciding game, as did Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve, who was suspended after getting ejected Friday and blasting officials in her postgame news conference.
On the other side of the bracket, the Fever beat the Aces 85-77 to force their semifinal series to Game 5 on Tuesday (9:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2).
Here’s how Phoenix won, and what to expect in the decisive Indiana-Las Vegas game.
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Final: Phoenix 86, Minnesota 81
What the win means for Phoenix
The jubilation of winning the series and advancing to the franchise’s first WNBA Finals in four years also comes with a sigh of relief. Playing against the injury-laden Lynx, the Mercury got off to a slow start, missing their first six field goal attempts, giving Minnesota a sign of life it didn’t appear to have after the end of Friday’s game. But another fourth quarter comeback saved Phoenix from a return trip to Minnesota and a deciding Game 5.
Down by 14 in the first half and 13 entering the fourth quarter, Phoenix dominated the fourth quarter for a third consecutive game. Behind five 3-pointers, including two crucial deep shots from DeWanna Bonner, the Mercury outscored Minnesota 31-13 in the final 10 minutes.
It was the Mercury’s second 14-point comeback in the series. Alyssa Thomas was big in the fourth, scoring 10 of her 23 points. She also assisted on a Sami Whitcomb 3-pointer that brought Phoenix within 70-69 with 4:47 to play, and Bonner’s second 3 that pushed the lead to 77-73 with 2:02 remaining.
Reaching the Finals is a testament to the job general manager Nick U’Ren did in the offseason. He completely revamped the roster, keeping only Kahleah Copper and Natasha Mack, while bringing in Thomas and Satou Sabally. The chemistry came together in the biggest moments of the biggest games of the season.
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Alyssa Thomas seals it with late jumper for Mercury
Alyssa Thomas knocks down the clutch shot to make it 81-76 vs. Lynx.
What the loss means for Minnesota
A season with only one mission — to win a championship — ends early. To not only fall short of that goal but see the season end one round earlier than last year is going to be difficult for the franchise to live with all offseason. That the Lynx played so well for 30 minutes in a game in which they didn’t have their star player or coach will be little consolation. Minnesota had complete control of this series until the fourth quarter of Game 2 on Tuesday; five days later its season is over.
All the disappointment will overshadow a brilliant performance by Kayla McBride, who scored a playoff career-high 31 points and tied a WNBA postseason record with six 3-pointers in the second half. Jessica Shepard, who played just eight minutes in Game 3, had 14 points and 7 rebounds in 36 minutes in place of Collier, giving the Lynx exactly what they needed to combat what had been a Mercury advantage on the inside for most of the series.
How do the Mercury prepare for the Finals?
Phoenix now has five days off before the start of the best-of-seven championship round and still won’t know its opponent until the Fever and Aces decide their Game 5 on Tuesday. This week, the Mercury will certainly take a look at how they’re starting games. Phoenix didn’t make a field goal for the first 4:47 on Sunday and scored just 14 first-quarter points. The Mercury trailed after the first quarter in three of the four games in the series. It’s nice to be the comeback kids and to have confidence late in games, but putting themselves in those situations is precarious. — Charlie Creme
Final: Indiana 90, Las Vegas 83
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Fever take down Aces in Game 4 to even series
Aliyah Boston and Kelsey Mitchell combine for 49 points to boost the Fever to a win in Game 4 over the Aces.
What the win means for Indiana
A winner-take-all Game 5 on Tuesday in Las Vegas. Given all the injuries the Fever have dealt with this season, they’ll undoubtedly take it. And there’s no reason for Indiana not to believe in a possible win. The Fever already won at Michelob Ultra Arena in Game 1 and knocked off the Atlanta Dream in an identical situation in the first round.
Beyond those general factors, Indiana found something by playing through Aliyah Boston in Game 4. Having made just two free throws in the first three games of the series while scoring 28 total points, Boston smashed that total by going 10-for-13 from the line Sunday en route to 24 points — not to mention 15 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks. At age 23, Boston is the youngest player in WNBA history with at least 20 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists in a playoff game according to ESPN Research.
What the loss means for Las Vegas
The Aces are also headed to their second deciding game in as many series, having survived an upset bid when the Seattle Storm missed at the buzzer in Game 3 of the opening round.
Although Vegas is a win away from hosting the WNBA Finals, this hasn’t been the kind of dominant playoff run we expected based on the Aces’ 16-game winning streak to end the regular season, which they stretched to 17 by winning their opening game against Seattle. Since then, Las Vegas has gone 3-3. If the Aces want to be favored against Phoenix in the Finals, they’ll need to show us something in Game 3.
Where else can the Aces find offense?
After A’ja Wilson struggled from the field in Las Vegas’ Game 3 win, she had no such trouble in scoring 31 points on 14-of-24 shooting on Sunday. The Aces’ backcourt of Chelsea Gray and Jackie Young also excelled with a combined 30 points and 18 assists, making five 3-pointers. But the three leading scorers combined for nearly three-quarters of Las Vegas’ 83 points.
The Aces’ bench totaled 11 points on 4-of-14 shooting, a problem given starter Kierstan Bell logged just six minutes. They’ve only had fewer points in one game so far this postseason — Game 3 against Seattle. — Kevin Pelton
