2024 WNBA playoffs scores: Breanna Stewart, Liberty and A'ja Wilson, Aces open postseason with resounding wins

All of the home teams won on Sunday

The 2024 WNBA playoffs have arrived, and Sunday's quadruple header is in the books. Early on, the New York Liberty cruised past the Atlanta Dream, the Connecticut Sun pulled away from the Indiana Fever in the second half and the Minnesota Lynx survived a late scare to get past the Phoenix Lynx. In the finale, the Las Vegas Aces held the Seattle Storm to just two points in the fourth quarter to escape with a hard-fought win. 

As a refresher, the first-round playoff series are best-of-three, with a unique 2-1 format that sees the higher seed host Games 1 and 2. That means they can complete a sweep and advance to the semifinals without playing a road game. At the same time, if the lower seed can steal one of the first two contests, they then get to host a winner-take-all Game 3.

Here are the final scores from Sunday:

• No. 1 New York Liberty 83, No. 8 Atlanta Dream 69
• No. 3 Connecticut Sun 93, No. 6 Indiana Fever 69
• No. 2 Minnesota Lynx 102, No. 7 Phoenix Mercury 95
• No. 4 Las Vegas Aces 78, No. 5 Seattle Storm 67

[Sep 22, 2024 at 11:56 pm ET · Jack Maloney]

FINAL: Aces 78 -- Storm 67

The Storm went into the fourth quarter with a two point lead, but they did not make a single shot in the final 10 minutes, and were outscored 14-2. This was far from a vintage performance by the Aces, but they did enough to get the job done and take a 1-0 lead in the series. Their quest for a threepeat is off and running. 

Newly crowned MVP A'ja Wilson had a rough start, but recovered to finish with 21 points, eight rebounds and five blocks. Tiffany Hayes came off the bench to add 20 points and five steals, while Chelsea Gray looked like her usual self with 16 points and seven assists. 

As a team, the Storm shot just 36.8% from the field, and were unable to take advantage of the Aces' own lackluster showing on offense. This was the exact type of game that the Storm wanted, and if they couldn't win tonight it's hard to see how they ever beat the Aces. 

[Sep 22, 2024 at 7:08 pm ET · Jack Maloney]

FINAL: Lynx 102 -- Mercury 95

It seemed another blowout was in store for this opening day of the playoffs when the Lynx jumped out to 23-point lead, but the Mercury had other ideas. The veteran group came storming back in the second half and had the lead with just over two minutes to play. Their comeback stalled after that point, however, as the Lynx ended the game on a 11-3 run. 

Napheesa Collier went off for 38 points, six rebounds and four assists, while Kayla McBride added 20 points and four assists. Bridget Carleton, who has come up with so many big plays for the Lynx this season, hit the biggest shot of the game -- a step-back 3 to beat the shot clock in the final minute that pushed the Lynx's lead up to six. 

Natasha Cloud went for 33 points, six rebounds and 10 assists in defeat, and Diana Taurasi had 21 points in the first game of what could be her final playoff run. 

[Sep 22, 2024 at 5:05 pm ET · Jack Maloney]

FINAL: Sun 93 -- Fever 69

After a competitive start to the game, the Sun built a lead heading into halftime and then dominated after the break. Marina Mabrey set a playoff record for points off the bench with 27, Alyssa Thomas recorded her fourth career playoff triple-double with 12 points, 10 rebounds and 13 assists and the Sun shot 50% from 3-point land. 

The only downside for the Sun was that starting point guard Tyasha Harris went down with an ankle injury in the first half and left in a boot. Her status moving forward is to be determined, but it doesn't look good.

As for the Fever, their high-powered offense never got into gear. They got some pretty good looks, particularly in the first half, but could not buy a shot. As a team, they went 6-of-28 from 3-point line. If they're getting out-shot from downtown by the Sun, they have no chance. Caitlin Clark finished with 11 points, four rebounds and eight assists on 4-of-17 shooting. 

[Sep 22, 2024 at 3:06 pm ET · Jack Maloney]

FINAL: Liberty 83 -- Dream 69

The Liberty dominated Game 1 to jump out to a 1-0 lead over the Dream in their best-of-three first round series and are now one win away from the semifinals. This game was largely uncompetitive, as the Liberty jumped out to an early lead and never looked back. 

Leonie Fiebich, who moved into the starting lineup in place of Courtney Vandersloot, poured in a career-high 21 points, while Breanna Stewart added 20 points, 11 rebounds, three assists, two steals and three blocks in another stellar all-around effort. 

[Sep 22, 2024 at 11:38 pm ET · Jack Maloney]

Storm scoreless in the fourth

Offense has been an issue for the Storm tonight, as it has been all season long, and the fourth quarter has been particularly ugly. The Storm still haven't scored and they're 0-of-7 from the field. Even worse, they haven't even been getting good looks. Too many end-of-shot-clock attempts. Right now, it's hard to see who changes that. 

[Sep 22, 2024 at 11:28 pm ET · Jack Maloney]

Third quarter: Storm 65 -- Aces 64

A'ja Wilson finally showed up to Game 1. After scoring just four points in the first half, she went off for 15 in the third quarter alone to get the Aces within one heading into the final frame. The Aces are going to need more of that down the stretch if they want to complete this comeback. 

The Storm have done a great job of staying level-headed and responding to every Aces run. There have been a bunch of times in the last two quarters where the Aces went on a run that could have snowballed very quickly, but the Storm didn't let that happen. 

[Sep 22, 2024 at 11:16 pm ET · Jack Maloney]

Wilson starting to cook

A'ja Wilson got off to a terrible start and had just four points on 1-of-8 shooting in the first half. She's starting to cook here early in the third, however, and is up to 15 points already. This is great news for the Aces, who were struggling to find offense for most of this game.