No team in WNBA history has ever come back from an 0-2 hole to win a playoff series, but that's exactly what the Liberty and Aces will have to do if they want to make it to the WNBA Finals.
On Wednesday night in Atlanta, the fourth-seeded Dream outlasted the eighth-seeded Liberty 101-98 in overtime in a thrilling game that wasn't without controversy. Breanna Stewart was phenomenal with 35 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, but Angel Reese and Jordin Canada led the Dream to victory with 23 points each, with Reese adding seven rebounds, two assists and two blocks, and Canada adding eight assists and five boards.
Later in the evening in San Francisco, the second-seeded Golden State Valkyries held off a late rally by the third-seeded Las Vegas Aces 83-81. A'ja Wilson led the way for the defending champs with 24 points, seven rebounds and two assists, but it was the Valkyries' bench that stole the show -- namely Tiffany Hayes, who had 21 points. Overall, Golden State's reserves outscored Vegas's 34-14.
The Liberty and Aces will both host Game 3s on Friday night.
After the top eight teams made the postseason, three of the top four seeds advanced past the first round, with one notable exception, as the eighth-seeded Liberty knocked out the top-seeded Lynx. The Dream advanced to their first semifinal since 2018 with a sweep of the Mystics, the reigning champion Las Vegas Aces took care of Caitlin Clark and the Fever in three games and the Valkyries overcame a 16-point deficit in an elimination game to knock out the Wings.
The thrilling start to the playoffs is fitting, since the 2026 WNBA season has been groundbreaking, on and off the court. It launched on the heels of a contentious and extended labor battle that resulted in a historic raise for the players (the salary cap increased from $1.5 million in 2025 to $7 million in 2026), and in return, the players raised the bar on a weekly basis. Multiple regular-season records fell this year, from Clark becoming the first player in WNBA history with a 40-point, 10-assist game, to Angel Reese breaking the single-game rebounding record with 26 to Kelsey Mitchell passing A'ja Wilson's single-season points record.
Here's how you can follow the playoffs.
2026 WNBA playoff bracket
2026 WNBA playoff schedule
Semifinals schedule
(All times Eastern)
Friday, Oct. 9
- Game 3: Dream vs. Liberty, 7:30 p.m., ESPN2/fubo
- Game 3: Valkyries vs. Aces, 9:30 p.m., NBCSN
Sunday, Oct. 11
Wednesday, Oct. 14
- Game 5*: Dream vs. Liberty, TBD, ESPN/fubo
- Game 5*: Valkyries vs. Aces, TBD, NBCSN
Semifinals scores
Sunday, Oct. 4
- Game 1: No. 4 Dream 92, No. 8 Liberty 82
- Game 1: No. 2 Valkyries 71, No. 3 Aces 60
Wednesday, Oct. 7
- Game 2: No. 4 Dream 101, No. 8 Liberty 98 (OT)
- Game 2: No. 2 Valkyries 83, No. 3 Aces 81
WNBA Finals
Saturday, Oct. 17
- Game 1: TBD vs. TBD, 3:30 p.m. ET | NBC/fubo
Monday, Oct. 19
- Game 2: TBD vs. TBD, 3:30 p.m. ET | USA/fubo
Thursday, Oct. 22
- Game 3: TBD vs. TBD, 8 p.m. ET | USA/fubo
Saturday, Oct. 24
- Game 4: TBD vs. TBD, 3:30 p.m. ET | NBC/fubo
Monday, Oct. 26
- Game 5*: TBD vs. TBD, 8 p.m. ET | USA/fubo
Thursday, Oct. 29
- Game 6*: TBD vs. TBD, 8 p.m. ET | USA/fubo
Saturday, Oct. 31
- Game 7*: TBD vs. TBD, 8 p.m. ET | USA/fubo
* - denotes if necessary
First-round scores
Sunday, Sept. 27
- Game 1: No. 8 Liberty 91, No. 1 Lynx 75
- Game 1: No. 3 Aces 102, No. 6 Fever 85
- Game 1: No. 4 Dream 92, No. 5 Mystics 77
- Game 1: No. 2 Valkyries 104, No. 7 Wings 80
Tuesday, Sept. 29
- Game 2: No. 6 Fever 99, No. 3 Aces 89
- Game 2: No. 8 Liberty 87, No. 1 Lynx 71 (New York wins 2-0)
Wednesday, Sept. 30
- Game 2: No. 4 Dream 93, No. 5 Mystics 75 (Atlanta wins 2-0)
- Game 2: No. 7 Wings 108, No. 2 Valkyries 100 (OT)
Thursday, Oct. 1
- Game 3: No. 3 Aces 94, No. 6 Fever 83 (Las Vegas wins 2-1)
Friday, Oct. 2
- Game 3: No. 2 Valkyries 77, No. 7 Wings 73 (Golden State wins 2-1)
