Sunday review: Lynx, Aces, Dream, Liberty start with wins

The WNBA playoffs are underway. The first round tipped off Sunday as the top-seeded Minnesota Lynx and 3-seed Atlanta Dream opened with Game 1 home victories.

Fifth-seeded New York then needed overtime to knock off 4-seed Phoenix and steal back home-court advantage -- though Breanna Stewart appeared to injure her left knee toward the end of the game.

In the nightcap, the Las Vegas Aces routed the Seattle Storm.

ESPN breaks down everything we saw Sunday, with postgame analysis on each game.

MORE: Playoff predictions | Strengths, flaws for every team | Top 25 players | Schedule

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Las Vegas Aces vs. Seattle Storm - Game Highlights

Watch the Game Highlights from Las Vegas Aces vs. Seattle Storm, 09/14/2025

(2) Las Vegas Aces vs.
(7) Seattle Storm

Final: Las Vegas 102, Seattle 77

What the win means for Las Vegas: The Aces stretched their winning streak to 17 games and showed why they've sustained it. Their confidence is growing, and they're the healthiest and deepest they've been all season.

Every player combination for the Aces worked. A'ja Wilson and Jackie Young were their usual selves, combining for 47 points, 14 rebounds and 9 assists. They have been the stars of the winning streak -- and now the players around them are excelling, too.

Jewell Loyd, Cheyenne Parker-Tyus and Dana Evans brought energy off the bench and combined for 34 points. The Aces' starters headed to the bench with about five minutes left in the game and the victory all but secured.

The Aces improve to 7-0 in first-round games under Becky Hammon, who took over as coach in 2022.

What the loss means for Seattle: The Storm were swept in the first round by Las Vegas last year, and they're halfway to the same fate. They were outplayed in every aspect, and it led to the franchise's largest loss in the playoffs, eclipsing Seattle's 23-point defeat to Los Angeles in 2019.

The Storm get to go home, and they need a spark from their fans because they had none Sunday.

Can Seattle find anything that works against the Aces for Game 2? The Storm don't have much time to figure it out, with Game 2 on Tuesday. But the Storm must figure out how to move the ball better against the Aces. That's not easy with how Las Vegas has been playing defense for more than the past month. But Sunday, Seattle had just 25 points in the first half, tied for its fewest in a playoff half in franchise history. Trailing by 20 at that point, the game already appeared over.

Seattle has to come out with more fire in Game 2, establish its post game (Wilson dominated the Storm offensively and defensively) and guard the 3-point line better. In essence, the Storm need a different game from what they played Sunday. -- Michael Voepel

(4) Phoenix Mercury vs.
(5) New York Liberty

Final: New York 76, Phoenix 69

What the win means for New York: The defending champs reclaimed home-court advantage after finishing as the No. 5 seed in the regular season, but the work is far from done. New York must complete the sweep at Barclays Center on Wednesday or face the prospect of winning a deciding Game 3 back in Phoenix.

The biggest concern over the next three days will be the health of former MVP Breanna Stewart, who left the game in overtime after appearing to suffer a knee injury while attempting a shot. Stewart stayed in to shoot the free throw and for the next minute of play was in obvious pain. The fact that she was unable to finish a game that was still very much in the balance is a troubling indicator for Stewart's availability going forward, though New York will know far more after running tests.

One bit of good news: This isn't the same knee on which Stewart had offseason meniscus surgery and more recently was sidelined for nearly a month due to a bone bruise. Both of those injuries were to her right knee.

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Phoenix Mercury vs. New York Liberty - Game Highlights

Watch the Game Highlights from Phoenix Mercury vs. New York Liberty, 09/14/2025

What the loss means for Phoenix: The Mercury will face elimination on Wednesday. As admirably as they competed on defense, holding New York to 42% shooting and forcing 20 turnovers, they just couldn't score enough. They only shot worse than Sunday's 32.5% once during the 44-game regular season.

In particular, Phoenix could use more offense from All-Star Satou Sabally, who suffered through a dreadful shooting game in her postseason debut for the team. Sabally missed her final 13 shot attempts and has only missed more total (15) shots once in her WNBA career. She has now shot a combined 4-for-32 (12.5%) in her past two playoff games.

One possible adjustment for coach Nate Tibbetts: favoring dangerous reserve Sami Whitcomb over starter Monique Akoa Makani, giving New York less ability to hide Sabrina Ionescu on defense. The Mercury were plus-7 in Whitcomb's 20 minutes of play.

Will the bench battle favor Phoenix in Game 2? Kennedy Burke was a contender for Sixth Player of the Year and Emma Meesseman is one of the world's best players -- but on Sunday it was the Mercury's second unit that shone, outscoring the Liberty reserves 21-2. DeWanna Bonner scored double digits, and although Whitcomb didn't shoot especially well, her floor spacing opened things up for Alyssa Thomas.

It's hard to expect this trend to continue. Meesseman couldn't get anything going, shooting 1-of-6 from the field. Meesseman shot worse than 50% just three times in 17 regular-season games. The narrative that role players play better at home is overstated -- everybody plays better at home, including stars -- but the Liberty should expect better bench play in Game 2. -- Kevin Pelton

(3) Atlanta Dream vs.
(6) Indiana Fever

Final: Atlanta 80, Indiana 68

What the win means for Atlanta: The Dream earned their first playoff win since 2018 and are one victory away from advancing to the semifinals, where they'd face the winner of Aces-Storm. Karl Smesko's arrival this offseason revamped Atlanta's offense, but what went a bit more under the radar was how the Dream have also been a strong defensive unit. They showed that Sunday, frustrating Indiana into 15 or fewer points in the second and fourth frames and slowing down their high-powered offense for large stretches of the game.

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Atlanta Dream vs. Indiana Fever - Game Highlights

Watch the Game Highlights from Atlanta Dream vs. Indiana Fever, 09/14/2025

Atlanta entered the postseason with 149 combined playoff games on the roster, third-fewest in the field, but showed no signs of a lack of experience, particularly in the fourth quarter as the Dream kept their foot on the gas and ran away with the win.

Historically, teams that win Game 1 in a best-of-three have won the series 71% of the time, with a series record of 85-34.

What the loss means for Indiana: After being swept last season, the Fever remain winless in the postseason dating to 2016. Thanks to the change in playoff format, they will host Game 2 in Indianapolis on Tuesday. They have dealt with a host of adversity this offseason with all the season-ending injuries, so this loss is simply the latest challenge in keeping their season alive.

The shorthanded Fever could also use forward Damiris Dantas (concussion protocol) to return by Game 2 to shore up their depth against a talented Dream frontcourt.

X factor for Game 2: Kelsey Mitchell put up a playoff-career high 27 points in Game 1, but who else will step up for the Fever on offense? Only Odyssey Sims also finished in double figures, and the bench generated just five points outside of garbage time. After shooting 8-for-17 in the first frame, Indiana didn't make more than six field goals in any subsequent quarter, finishing with a 34.9% clip from the field and 2-for-15 shooting from 3.

Indiana has shown itself capable of producing four or five double-digit scorers, but is that too tall a task with its depth depleted against a defense like Atlanta's? If not, the Fever's defense must be way sharper to even the series.

Indiana will also need better composure down the stretch than it had Sunday, where (in part over frustration toward officiating) the wheels came off in the fourth quarter. -- Alexa Philippou

(1) Minnesota Lynx vs.
(8) Golden State Valkyries

Final: Minnesota 101, Golden State 72

What the win means for Minnesota: The Lynx took control in the second quarter. After trailing by six at the end of the first, the Lynx opened the second quarter on a 15-5 run, outscored the Valkyries 26-12 in the period and led 47-40 at halftime.

Natisha Hiedeman, a candidate for Sixth Player of the Year, provided the Lynx with a big spark off the bench, as she has done all season. The momentum shifted as soon as she checked into the game with 3:43 left in the first quarter. Hiedeman finished the game with a career-high 18 points in 23 minutes.

The Lynx never looked back, outscoring the Valkyries 54-34 through the final two quarters to move one game away from returning to the semifinals.

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Lynx down Valkyries in Game 1

The Lynx cruise in Game 1 as they take a 1-0 series lead over the Valkyries.

What the loss means for Golden State: The Valkyries trail 0-1 in the series as they return to the Bay Area -- where they will play at the SAP Center in San Jose instead of the Chase Center in San Francisco. It's a tall task to slow the Lynx, but there were flashes today of what could steal them a game this series and avoid a sweep.

Golden State entered the playoffs ranked 12th in the league in 3-point percentage, but the Valkyries had one of their best shooting periods of the season Sunday. They shot 5-of-8 (62.5%) from beyond the arc and held Minnesota to 8-of-20 from the floor at the other end. They were creating good looks, not just hoisting up shots and hoping for the best. To even the series, they have to replicate this kind of offense and take control of the game again.

X factor for Game 2: Bench production will be a big factor in either the Valkyries forcing a Game 3 or the Lynx sweeping the series. Golden State's second unit scored six points until the benches were cleared with 3:37 left in the game -- all by Kate Martin. Its bench finished with 17, while Minnesota got 42 points from its second unit. Hiedeman had 18, while Jessica Shepard added 12 points and DiJonai Carrington, who had missed the past four games with a shoulder injury, finished with six points on two made 3-pointers.

The Valkyries need more from these bench minutes and can't solely rely on their starters if they want to make it past the first round. -- Kendra Andrews

First-round playoff predictions