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WNBA Playoffs: Caitlin Clark and Fever Blown Out in First Round, Diana Taurasi May Play Her Last Game Ever
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WNBA Playoffs: Caitlin Clark and Fever Blown Out in First Round, Diana Taurasi May Play Her Last Game Ever



CNN

The final four games of the 2024 WNBA playoffs have been set.

The first round of the postseason concluded on Wednesday with the Connecticut Sun and Minnesota Lynx securing a spot in the semifinals.

Here’s everything you need to know about which groups are moving on and which groups are going home.

Caitlin Clark’s spectacular debut season comes to an end after the No. 6 Indiana Fever was defeated 87-81 in Game 2 by the third-seeded Sun to complete the best-of-three series.

Clark — who was unanimously named the AP WNBA Rookie of the Year on Sunday — led all scorers with 25 points and also had nine assists and six rebounds. She is the first rookie in league history to record at least 25 points, five assists and five rebounds in a playoff game and became the youngest player in history to accomplish the feat.

“It’s a good taste of what’s possible for this organization and for this franchise,” Clark told reporters after the game. “There’s a lot to hold our heads high about. This team won, I think, five games two years ago. We’re a young group, a pretty inexperienced group, but we came together and had a lot of fun with each other … proud of this group. We stayed resilient all year and had a lot of fun with each other.”

After ending her senior year at Iowa with a loss to South Carolina in the national championship game, Clark had just over a month to prepare for her WNBA debut.

“It’s good for me to look back on everything that’s happened,” she said. “I feel like I haven’t had time to really reflect on my time at college because it went by so quickly.

“Then I came here and tried to give everything I could to this team and move on and put all that behind me and help this team get back to the playoffs. I’m excited to take some time for myself and really enjoy it and reflect.”

Clark heads to the basket while being defended by Connecticut guard DiJonai Carrington.

Aliyah Boston, the 2023 Rookie of the Year, recorded a big double-double for the Fever with 16 points and 19 rebounds to give Indiana a 77-75 lead with just over two minutes left in the game.

But she got an immediate answer from DeWanna Bonner, playing her record-tying 82nd postseason game, with a triple to spark a 12-4 run by Connecticut that clinched the series.

Alyssa Thomas was the top player for the third-seeded Sun with 19 points and 13 assists. Four other Connecticut players scored in double figures.

This is the sixth straight year the Sun have reached the playoff semifinals, but the franchise is still chasing its first WNBA championship.

Diana Taurasi may have played her last WNBA game ever.

The second-seeded Lynx defeated the seventh-seeded Phoenix Mercury 101-88 thanks to a dominant performance from Napheesa Collier, finishing with a 2-0 sweep and advancing to a semifinal against the Sun, amid growing rumors of Taurasi’s possible retirement.

Taurasi had 10 points, four rebounds and three assists before being taken out of the game for a foul. She received a standing ovation from the Target Center in Minnesota as she left the court.

The 42-year-old was drafted first overall by the Mercury in 2004 and has spent her entire WNBA career with the franchise. She is a former MVP, three-time WNBA champion, six-time EuroLeague champion, six-time Olympic gold medalist, 11-time WNBA All-Star and is widely regarded as one of the greatest women’s basketball players of all time.

She has not yet officially confirmed her retirement, but gave an emotional speech to the crowd in Phoenix during the final game of the regular season last week.

“I want to thank every coach, every player, every person who has worn a WNBA jersey, because this is a small town team and our league is about lifting each other up,” she said in her speech. “And to look back at where we are now, 28 years later, for those who played before, this league is where it is today, we’re thankful for you, and we’re thankful for the next generation.

“If it’s the last time, it feels like the first time,” she added.

Taurasi leaves the field for what may be the last time as an active player.

Brittney Griner led the Mercury with 24 points, while Natasha Cloud and Kahleah Copper added 16 and 13, respectively.

Collier delivered a stellar performance to help the Lynx advance to the next round. She tied the WNBA playoff scoring record with 42 points on 70 percent shooting, while also recording five rebounds, four assists and two blocks. She has scored a total of 80 points in her two games against the Mercury, the most over a two-game series in WNBA postseason history, according to the league.

Minnesota is chasing its fifth WNBA title. The winner of the Lynx-Sun series will face the reigning champions Las Vegas Aces or the New York Liberty in the 2024 WNBA Finals.