2019 WNBA Finals
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Dates | September 29 – October 10 | |||||||||
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MVP | Emma Meesseman | |||||||||
Eastern Finals | Washington Mystics defeated Las Vegas Aces 3–1 | |||||||||
Western Finals | Connecticut Sun defeated Los Angeles Sparks 3–0 | |||||||||
The 2019 WNBA Finals, officially WNBA Finals 2019 presented by YouTube TV for sponsorship reasons, was the best-of-five championship series for the 2019 season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Finals featured the top seeded Washington Mystics facing off against the second seed Connecticut Sun.[1] The Washington Mystics defeated the Connecticut Sun through five turbulent games, with the Mystics winning the odd-numbered games and the Sun emerging victorious through the even-numbered games, exploiting a temporary absence of Elena Delle Donne and drawing upon unrelenting resolve to keep the series going, to make their bid for a championship that ultimately failed after the Mystics resurged in Game 5's final quarter. This was the first-ever Finals win for the Washington Mystics, as well as the Connecticut Sun's third Finals appearance.
Road to the Finals
Standings
# | Western Conference | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Conf. |
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1 | Los Angeles Sparks (3) | 22 | 12 | .647 | – | 15–2 | 7–10 | 10–6 |
2 | Las Vegas Aces (4) | 21 | 13 | .618 | 1 | 13–4 | 8–9 | 11–5 |
3 | Seattle Storm (6) | 18 | 16 | .529 | 4 | 11–6 | 7–10 | 10–6 |
4 | Minnesota Lynx (7) | 18 | 16 | .529 | 4 | 11–6 | 7–10 | 7–9 |
5 | Phoenix Mercury (8) | 15 | 19 | .441 | 7 | 9–8 | 6–11 | 5–11 |
6 | e – Dallas Wings | 10 | 24 | .294 | 12 | 8–9 | 2–15 | 5–11 |
# | Eastern Conference | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Conf. |
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1 | Washington Mystics (1) | 26 | 8 | .765 | – | 14–3 | 12–5 | 13–3 |
2 | Connecticut Sun (2) | 23 | 11 | .676 | 3 | 15–2 | 8–9 | 11–5 |
3 | Chicago Sky (5) | 20 | 14 | .588 | 6 | 12–5 | 8–9 | 11–5 |
4 | e –Indiana Fever | 13 | 21 | .382 | 13 | 7–10 | 6–11 | 7–9 |
5 | e –New York Liberty | 10 | 24 | .294 | 16 | 4–13 | 6–11 | 3–13 |
6 | e –Atlanta Dream | 8 | 26 | .235 | 18 | 5–12 | 3–14 | 3–13 |
Playoffs
First round: Single elimination (Sept. 11) | Second round: Single elimination (Sept. 15) | Semifinals: Best-of-five (Sept. 17 – Sept. 24) | WNBA Finals: Best-of-five (Sept. 29 – Oct. 10) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
1 | Washington Mystics | 97 | 103 | 75 | 94 | ||||||||||||||||||||
4 | Las Vegas Aces | 93 | 4 | Las Vegas Aces | 95 | 91 | 92 | 90 | |||||||||||||||||
5 | Chicago Sky | 105 | 5 | Chicago Sky | 92 | 1 | Washington Mystics | 95 | 87 | 94 | 86 | 89 | |||||||||||||
8 | Phoenix Mercury | 76 | 2 | Connecticut Sun | 86 | 99 | 81 | 90 | 78 | ||||||||||||||||
2 | Connecticut Sun | 84 | 94 | 78 | |||||||||||||||||||||
3 | Los Angeles Sparks | 92 | 3 | Los Angeles Sparks | 75 | 68 | 56 | ||||||||||||||||||
6 | Seattle Storm | 84 | 6 | Seattle Storm | 69 | ||||||||||||||||||||
7 | Minnesota Lynx | 74 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Note: Teams re-seeded after each round.
Summary
This finals was the third time in the four years since the WNBA switched playoff formats in 2016 that two teams from the same conference met in the WNBA Finals. In
The Mystics' home court advantage figured to play a critical role in these finals. The Mystics had a 14–3 home record during the regular season and the Connecticut Sun had a 15–2 regular season home record. However, the Mystics had a regular season away record advantage 12–5 vs. 8–9. The Sun won the regular season series 2–1, with the home team winning each game.[2]
Game 1
September 29
3:00pm ET |
Connecticut Sun 86, Washington Mystics 95 | ||
Scoring by quarter: 17–30, 29–25, 20–21, 20–19 | ||
(6) | Pts: Elena Delle Donne (22) Rebs: Elena Delle Donne (10) Asts: Natasha Cloud (7) |
St. Elizabeth's East Arena Attendance: 4,200 Referees: Roy Gulbeyan Byron Jarrett Tim Greene Cheryl Flores |
Game 2
Elena Delle Donne only played 3:20 of the first quarter before experiencing back spasms that saw her miss the remainder of the game. The Sun took advantage of the League MVP's absence and won Game Two by twelve points. The Sun were led by Jonquel Jones who achieved the WNBA Finals' first ever thirty point and fifteen rebound game. Jones finished with thirty-two points and eighteen rebounds. The Mystics were able to tie the score at seventy-six, with eight minutes remaining, but Jones re-entered the game after sitting on the bench with four fouls. She returned to the game and helped the Sun finish off the win. With the series tied at one game apiece, the series heads to Connecticut for the next two games. The Sun now have home court advantage in the series.[4]
October 1
8:00pm ET |
Connecticut Sun 99, Washington Mystics 87 | ||
Scoring by quarter: 29–17, 27–29, 17–23, 26–18 | ||
Courtney Williams (6) |
Pts: Emma Meesseman (27) Rebs: Emma Meesseman (8) Asts: Kristi Toliver (7) |
St. Elizabeth's East Arena Attendance: 4,200 Referees: Michael Price Maj Forsberg Tim Greene Billy Smith |
Game 3
Elena Delle Donne played through her herniated disk and contributed 13 points in the Mystics road win. Washington got out to a hot start, going up fifteen points in the first quarter. They then took a five-point lead into halftime and never looked back, winning by thirteen points. Their road win brings them within one game of the WNBA Championship. The Mystics had four players score in double figures, with two reaching over twenty points. The Sun also had four players score in double figures, but none reached the twenty point mark.[5]
October 6
3:30pm ET |
Washington Mystics 94, Connecticut Sun 81 | ||
Scoring by quarter: 32–17, 11–22, 25–18, 26–24 | ||
(10) | Pts: Shekinna Stricklen / Jasmine Thomas (16) Rebs: Jonquel Jones (9) Asts: Alyssa Thomas (9) |
Game 4
The Sun stormed out to a fifteen-point lead in the first quarter and held off a late Mystics charge to win Game 4, and force a deciding Game 5. The Mystics made a run after halftime, winning the third quarter by sixteen points, and tying the game going into the fourth quarter, but it was not enough to overcome the Sun. Alyssa Thomas starred for the Sun, coming within two rebounds of the first WNBA Finals triple double. Jonquel Jones also recorded a double double for the Sun. The Mystics led by five at one point in the fourth, but the Sun hit two three pointers to gain the lead for good with 2:22 left. Connecticut went four for four on free throws in the last minute to seal the game.[6]
October 8
8:00pm ET |
Washington Mystics 86, Connecticut Sun 90 | ||
Scoring by quarter: 17–32, 23–24, 28–12, 18–22 | ||
(9) | Pts: Jonquel Jones (18) Rebs: Jonquel Jones (13) Asts: Alyssa Thomas (11) |
Game 5
Game five was a tight affair in the first half, with the Sun taking a one-point lead into half time. The game continued to be close in the third quarter. The Sun took a two-point lead into the final period. However, season MVP Elena Delle Donne scored four of her twenty-one points during an 8–0 run with three minutes left to seal the win for the Mystics. The Mystics won the fourth quarter by thirteen points, and the game by eleven. The win secured the Mystic's their first title in franchise history, and leaves the Sun still looking for their franchise's first title. Emma Meesseman lead the Mystics in scoring, with twenty two points. She was named the Finals MVP and became the first bench player to win the award.[7] Jonquel Jones lead the Sun with twenty-five points and Alyssa Thomas had twenty-one points and twelve rebounds, but it was not enough to overcome the Mystics.[8]
October 10
8:00pm ET |
Connecticut Sun 78, Washington Mystics 89 | ||
Scoring by quarter: 20–23, 23–19, 21–20, 14–27 | ||
(6) | Pts: Emma Meesseman (22) Rebs: Elena Delle Donne (9) Asts: Kristi Toliver (4) |
St. Elizabeth's East Arena Attendance: 4,200 Referees: Eric Brewton Roy Gulbeyan Maj Forsberg |
Team rosters
2019 Washington Mystics roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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References
- ^ "WNBA Playoffs 2019". wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
- ^ "WNBA Finals 2019 predictions: Will Washington Mystics or Connecticut Sun win?". espn.com. ESPN. September 28, 2019. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
- ^ Voepel, Mechelle (September 29, 2019). "Ariel Atkins sparks Mystics to Game 1 win in WNBA Finals". espn.com. ESPN. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
- ^ Voepel, Mechelle (October 1, 2019). "With Mystics' Elena Delle Donne hurt, Sun even WNBA Finals". espn.com. ESPN. Retrieved October 2, 2019.
- ^ "Determined Delle Donne the difference for Mystics in Game 3". espn.com. ESPN. October 6, 2019. Retrieved October 7, 2019.
- ^ "Sun force Game 5 in WNBA Finals with 90-86 win over Mystics". espn.com. The Associated Press. October 8, 2019. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
- ^ "Emma Meesseman Named WNBA Finals 2019 MVP". wnba.com. WNBA. October 10, 2019. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
- ^ "Mystics take title in Game 5 behind Elena Delle Donne, Finals MVP Emma Meesseman". espn.com. The Associated Press. October 10, 2019. Retrieved October 11, 2019.