Back in May, the 2021 WNBA season began with a thrilling opening night that featured two game-winning 3-pointers. On Sunday, the regular season came to a close, and now it’s time to turn our attention to the playoffs, which should hopefully be just as exciting as the past five months of basketball.
As a quick refresher of the revamped playoff format that began in 2016, the top eight teams make the playoffs regardless of conference affiliation. The top-two seeds get a bye all the way to the semifinals, while the Nos. 3 and 4 seeds get a bye to the second round. Teams seeded 5-8 begin play in the first round. The first and second rounds are single elimination, while the semifinals and Finals are both best-of-five series. After each round, the teams are re-seeded.
This season, the Connecticut Sun finished with the best record in the league at 26-6. In addition to a bye to the semis, they have also earned home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. The Las Vegas Aces, by virtue of finishing second, have also punched their ticket to the semis.
With the playoff bracket now set, here’s a look at the first-round matchups and the full schedule for the 2021 WNBA Playoffs:
Thursday, Sept. 23 — First round (single elimination)
- No. 7 Dallas Wings at No. 6 Chicago Sky, 8 p.m. ET — ESPN 2 (Watch ESPN)
- No. 8 New York Liberty at No. 5 Phoenix Mercury, 10 p.m. ET — ESPN 2 (Watch ESPN)
Sunday, Sept. 26 — Second round (single elimination)
- Lowest remaining seed at No. 3 Minnesota Lynx — TBD
- Highest remaining seed at No. 4 Seattle Storm — TBD
Tuesday, Sept. 28 — Semifinals Game 1
- TBD at No. 2 Las Vegas Aces — TBD
- TBD at No. 1 Connecticut Sun — TBD
Thursday, Sept. 30 — Semifinals Game 2
- TBD at No. 2 Las Vegas Aces — TBD
- TBD at No. 1 Connecticut Sun — TBD
Sunday, Oct. 3 — Semifinals Game 3
- TBD at No. 2 Las Vegas Aces — TBD
- TBD at No. 1 Connecticut Sun — TBD
Wednesday, Oct. 6 — Semifinals Game 4*
- TBD at No. 2 Las Vegas Aces — TBD
- TBD at No. 1 Connecticut Sun — TBD
*If necessary
Friday, Oct. 8 — Semifinals Game 5*
- TBD at No. 2 Las Vegas Aces — TBD
- TBD at No. 1 Connecticut Sun — TBD
*If necessary
Sunday, Oct. 10 — Finals Game 1
- TBD at TBD — TBD
Wednesday, Oct. 13 — Finals Game 2
- TBD at TBD — TBD
Friday, Oct. 15 — Finals Game 3
- TBD at TBD — TBD
Sunday, Oct. 17 — Finals Game 4*
- TBD at TBD — TBD
*If necessary
Tuesday, Oct. 19 — Finals Game 5*
- TBD at TBD — TBD
*If necessary
