2011 WNBA Playoffs

**2011 WNBA Playoffs**
Dates:	September 15 – October 7
Finals Champion:	Minnesota Lynx
Attendance:	9,232 per game
	Standings
	Standings
Eastern Conference	Western Conference
1st Indiana	1st Minnesota
2nd Connecticut	2nd Seattle
3rd Atlanta	3rd Phoenix
4th New York	4th San Antonio
	WNBA Playoffs
← 2010	2012 →

The 2011 WNBA Playoffs is the postseason for the Women's National Basketball Association's 2011 season. Four teams from each of the league's two conferences qualified for the playoffs seeded 1 to 4 in a tournament bracket, with the two opening rounds in a best-of-three format, and the final in a best-of-five format. The finals were won by the Minnesota Lynx who defeated the defending Eastern Conference Champion Atlanta Dream.

The Minnesota Lynx was the top overall seed in the tournament, having finished 27-7 in the regular season, the best record in franchise history. The team was appearing in its first playoffs since 2004. Prior to the 2011 playoffs, the Lynx had not won a playoff series in franchise history. This changed in the 2011 playoffs, as the Lynx won their first two playoff series to advance to the WNBA Finals.

The Atlanta Dream had reached the 2010 WNBA Finals, losing in three games to the Seattle Storm. Despite a slow start to the 2011 season, the Dream rebounded to finish with a 20-14 record, good for the third seed in the Eastern Conference. The Dream upset two higher-seeded teams to reach the WNBA finals for the second straight year.

After earning the third seed in the West, the Phoenix Mercury reached their third straight conference finals after upsetting the defending WNBA Champion Seattle Storm in the opening round. They ultimately lost to Minnesota in the conference final.

The Indiana Fever was the top seed in the Eastern Conference, and dispatched the New York Liberty in the opening round. They ultimately fell short to Atlanta in the conference final after WNBA MVP Tamika Catchings tore her plantar fascia in game two of the series, limiting her in the decisive game.

The Seattle Storm earned the West's second seed, and were attempting to repeat as WNBA champions. They took a 1-0 lead in the conference semifinals, but then dropped the next two, losing to Phoenix.

The Connecticut Sun earned the second seed in the East, but were swept in the opening round by the Dream, the eventual East champs.

The San Antonio Silver Stars were the lowest overall seed in the West and the tournament, and drew the unenviable task of playing the Minnesota Lynx. Despite the apparent mismatch, the Silver Stars lost by only one point in game one of the opening round, and won game two. They could not keep up with the Lynx in game three, however, and lost in the opening round.

Format[edit]

The top 4 teams from each conference qualify for the playoffs.
- All 4 teams are seeded by basis of their standings.
The series for rounds one and two are in a best-of-three format with Games 1 and 3 on the home court of the team with the higher seed. In previous years, the higher seed would play the first game on the road, then games 2 and (if needed) 3 at home.
The series for the WNBA Finals is in a best-of-five format with Games 1, 2 and 5 on the home court of the team with the higher seed.

Tiebreak procedures[edit]

Two-team tie[edit]

Better record in head-to-head games.
Better winning percentage within own conference.
Better winning percentage against all teams with .500 or better record at the end of the season.
Better point differential in games head-to-head.
Coin toss.

Three or more-team tie[edit]

Better winning percentage among all head-to-head games involving tied teams.
Better winning percentage against teams within conference (for first two rounds of playoffs) or better record against teams in the opposite conference (for Finals).
Better winning percentage against all teams with a .500 or better record at the end of the season.
Better point differential in games involving tied teams.
Coin toss.

Playoff qualifying[edit]

Eastern Conference[edit]

Seed	Team	W	L	Tiebreaker	Clinched
Seed	Team	W	L	Tiebreaker	Playoff berth	Conf. homecourt
1	Indiana Fever	21	13	3–2 vs. CON	August 30	September 7
2	Connecticut Sun	21	13	2–3 vs. IND	August 30	—
3	Atlanta Dream	20	14	—	September 4	—
4	New York Liberty	19	15	—	September 2	—

Western Conference[edit]

Seed	Team	W	L	Tiebreaker	Clinched
Seed	Team	W	L	Tiebreaker	Playoff berth	Playoffs homecourt
1	Minnesota Lynx	27	7	—	August 20	September 2
2	Seattle Storm	21	13	—	September 2	—
3	Phoenix Mercury	19	15	—	September 3	—
4	San Antonio Silver Stars	18	16	—	September 6	—

Bracket[edit]

Conference Semi-Finals
Best-of-3

Conference Finals
Best-of-3

WNBA Finals
Best-of-5

E1

Indiana

2

E4

New York

1

E1

Indiana

1

Eastern Conference

E3

Atlanta

2

E2

Connecticut

0

E3

Atlanta

2

E3

Atlanta

0

W1

Minnesota

3

W1

Minnesota

2

W4

San Antonio

1

W1

Minnesota

2

Western Conference

W3

Phoenix

0

W2

Seattle

1

W3

Phoenix

2

Note: italics denote home-court advantage; bold denotes series winner.

Eastern Conference[edit]

Conference Semifinals[edit]

(2) Connecticut Sun vs. (3) Atlanta Dream[edit]

September 16 7:00pm ET	Game 1	Atlanta Dream 89, Connecticut Sun 84		Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, CT Attendance: 7,373 Referees: Michael Price, Clarke Stevens, Maj Forsberg	NBATV
		Scoring by quarter: 18–20, 21–21, 22–25, 28–18
		Pts: Harding (21) Rebs: Lyttle (11) Asts: Harding (5)	Pts: Jones, Montgomery (16) Rebs: McCray (8) Asts: Lawson (4)

September 18 3:00pm ET	Game 2	Connecticut Sun 64, Atlanta Dream 69		Philips Arena, Atlanta, GA Attendance: 6,887 Referees: Sue Blauch, Daryl Humphrey, Tony Dawkins	ESPN2
		Scoring by quarter: 11–16, 25–15, 15–13, 13–25
		Pts: Jones (15) Rebs: Charles (17) Asts: Montgomery (6)	Pts: de Souza, Harding, Lyttle, McCoughtry (12) Rebs: de Souza (10) Asts: Harding (6)
		Atlanta won the series, 2–0

Regular-season series

The teams were tied 2–2 in the regular-season series:

July 31, 2011

September 15 8:00pm ET	Game 1	New York Liberty 72, Indiana Fever 74		Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN Attendance: 7,608 Referees: Denise Brooks, Lamont Simpson, Roy Gulbeyan	ESPN2
		Scoring by quarter: 16–28, 18–16, 24–18, 14–12
		Pts: Pondexter (18) Rebs: Powell (8) Asts: Pondexter (6)	Pts: Douglas (25) Rebs: Sutton-Brown (7) Asts: Bobbitt, Phillips (3)

September 17 4:00pm ET	Game 2	Indiana Fever 72, New York Liberty 87		Prudential Center, Newark, NJ Attendance: 8,508 Referees: Michael Price, Amy Bonner, Byron Jarret	NBATV MSG
		Scoring by quarter: 23–20, 18–30, 9–12, 22–25
		Pts: Douglas (20) Rebs: Catchings (9) Asts: Bobbitt, Phillips (4)	Pts: Powell (19) Rebs: Pondexter, Powell, Vaughn (5) Asts: Pondexter (5)

September 19 8:00pm ET	Game 3	New York Liberty 62, Indiana Fever 72		Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN Attendance: 7,368 Referees: Sue Blauch, Tom Mauer, Daryl Humphrey	ESPN2
		Scoring by quarter: 17–17, 19–23, 12–14, 14–18
		Pts: Powell (19) Rebs: Vaughn (7) Asts: Pondexter (5)	Pts: Douglas (21) Rebs: Catchings (8) Asts: Catchings (4)
		Indiana won the series, 2–1

September 22 7:00pm ET	Game 1	Atlanta Dream 74, Indiana Fever 82		Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN Attendance: 8,253 Referees: Denise Brooks, Amy Bonner, Michael Price	ESPN2
		Scoring by quarter: 24–21, 16–21, 17–15, 17–25
		Pts: Harding (17) Rebs: de Souza (13) Asts: Harding (7)	Pts: Smith (25) Rebs: Catchings (13) Asts: Catchings, Douglas, Zellous (3)

September 25 3:00pm ET	Game 2	Indiana Fever 77, Atlanta Dream 94		Philips Arena, Atlanta, GA Attendance: 8,052 Referees: Eric Brewton, Cameron Inouye, Roy Gulbeyan	ESPN2
		Scoring by quarter: 25–34, 26–21, 14–18, 12–21
		Pts: Douglas (25) Rebs: Catchings (9) Asts: Douglas (6)	Pts: Castro Marques (30) Rebs: Lyttle, Price (7) Asts: Harding (7)

September 27 8:00pm ET	Game 3	Atlanta Dream 83, Indiana Fever 67		Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN Attendance: 9,036 Referees: Sue Blauch, Kurt Walker, Lamont Simpson	ESPN2
		Scoring by quarter: 28–23, 11–12, 22–12, 22–20
		Pts: McCoughtry (26) Rebs: Lyttle (11) Asts: Harding (6)	Pts: Douglas (16) Rebs: Douglas, Sutton-Brown (9) Asts: Catchings, Phillips (3)
		Atlanta won the series, 2–1

September 16 9:00pm ET	Game 1	San Antonio Silver Stars 65, Minnesota Lynx 66		Target Center, Minneapolis, MN Attendance: 11,891 Referees: Sue Blauch, Daryl Humphrey, Jeff Smith	NBATV
		Scoring by quarter: 16–11, 19–21, 16–21, 14–13
		Pts: Adams, Hammon (16) Rebs: Young (9) Asts: Young (6)	Pts: Whalen (20) Rebs: Brunson (14) Asts: Whalen (5)

September 18 5:00pm ET	Game 2	Minnesota Lynx 75, San Antonio Silver Stars 84		AT&T Center, San Antonio, TX Attendance: 7,023 Referees: Denise Brooks, Cameron Inouye, Lamont Simpson	ESPN2
		Scoring by quarter: 14–18, 23–22, 13–24, 25–20
		Pts: Augustus (24) Rebs: Brunson (16) Asts: Whalen (3)	Pts: Perkins (24) Rebs: Adams, Perkins (6) Asts: Hammon (6)

September 20 8:00pm ET	Game 3	San Antonio Silver Stars 67, Minnesota Lynx 85		Target Center, Minneapolis, MN Attendance: 8,734 Referees: Eric Brewton, Roy Gulbeyan, Felicia Grinter	ESPN2
		Scoring by quarter: 19–18, 17–26, 20–22, 11–19
		Pts: Young (17) Rebs: Riley (6) Asts: Hammon (5)	Pts: Augustus (22) Rebs: Brunson (9) Asts: Augustus, McWilliams-Franklin, Moore (4)
		Minnesota won the series, 2–1

September 15 10:00pm ET	Game 1	Phoenix Mercury 61, Seattle Storm 80		KeyArena, Seattle, WA Attendance: 7,279 Referees: Tom Mauer, Eric Brewton, Cameron Inouye	ESPN2
		Scoring by quarter: 19–19, 12–21, 11–29, 19–11
		Pts: Taylor (13) Rebs: Bonner (8) Asts: Johnson, Swanier, Taylor (3)	Pts: Wright (21) Rebs: Cash, Little (11) Asts: Little (4)

September 17 10:00pm ET	Game 2	Seattle Storm 83, Phoenix Mercury 92		US Airways Center, Phoenix, AZ Attendance: 9,356 Referees: Scott Twardoski, Kurt Walker, Felicia Grinter	NBATV
		Scoring by quarter: 18–23, 22–28, 22–20, 21–21
		Pts: Wright (18) Rebs: Cash (5) Asts: Bird (4)	Pts: Dupree (29) Rebs: Dupree (13) Asts: Johnson (9)

September 19 10:00pm ET	Game 3	Phoenix Mercury 77, Seattle Storm 75		KeyArena, Seattle, WA Attendance: 8,589 Referees: Clarke Stevens, Michael Price, Amy Bonner	ESPN2
		Scoring by quarter: 9–20, 21–19, 24–18, 23–18
		Pts: Dupree (20) Rebs: Taylor (17) Asts: Johnson, Taurasi (3)	Pts: Bird (22) Rebs: Cash (10) Asts: Smith, Wright (4)
		Phoenix won the series, 2–1

September 22 9:00pm ET	Game 1	Phoenix Mercury 67, Minnesota Lynx 95		Target Center, Minneapolis, MN Attendance: 8,912 Referees: Sue Blauch, Lamont Simpson, Tom Mauer	ESPN2
		Scoring by quarter: 11–28, 25–19, 19–27, 12–21
		Pts: Taurasi (22) Rebs: Bonner (8) Asts: Johnson (4)	Pts: Augustus (21) Rebs: Brunson (13) Asts: Augustus (7)

September 25 5:00pm ET	Game 2	Minnesota Lynx 103, Phoenix Mercury 86		US Airways Center, Phoenix, AZ Attendance: 8,617 Referees: Michael Price, Daryl Humphrey, Denise Brooks	ESPN2
		Scoring by quarter: 24–20, 19–25, 27–20, 33–21
		Pts: McWilliams-Franklin, Moore (21) Rebs: Brunson (9) Asts: McWilliams-Franklin (7)	Pts: Bonner, Taurasi (22) Rebs: Dupree (11) Asts: Johnson (6)
		Minnesota won the series, 2–0

October 2 8:30pm ET	Game 1	Atlanta Dream 74, Minnesota Lynx 88		Target Center, Minneapolis, MN Attendance: 15,258 Referees: Eric Brewton, Denise Brooks, Roy Gulbeyan	ESPN
		Scoring by quarter: 18–14, 21–22, 23–26, 12–26
		Pts: McCoughtry (33) Rebs: Bales (9) Asts: Harding (5)	Pts: Brunson (26) Rebs: Brunson (11) Asts: Augustus (7)

October 5 8:00 PM ET	Game 2	Atlanta Dream 95, Minnesota Lynx 101		Target Center, Minneapolis, MN Attendance: 15,124 Referees: Sue Blauch, Kurt Walker, Lamont Simpson	ESPN2
		Scoring by quarter: 28–22, 30–28, 16–19, 21–32
		Pts: McCoughtry (38) Rebs: de Souza (10) Asts: Harding (7)	Pts: Augustus (36) Rebs: Augustus (8) Asts: Whalen (4)

October 7 8:00pm ET	Game 3	Minnesota Lynx 73, Atlanta Dream 67		Philips Arena, Atlanta, GA Attendance: 11,543 Referees: Michael Price, Daryl Humphrey, Cameron Inouye	ESPN2
		Scoring by quarter: 17–20, 16–17, 19–8, 21–22
		Pts: Augustus (16) Rebs: Brunson (9) Asts: Augustus, McWilliams-Franklin (4)	Pts: McCoughtry (22) Rebs: de Souza (15) Asts: Harding (7)
		Minnesota won the series, 3–0

v t e 2011 WNBA season by team
Draft • Schedule • All-Star Game • Playoffs • Finals
Eastern	Atlanta Dream	Chicago Sky	Connecticut Sun	Indiana Fever	New York Liberty	Washington Mystics
Western	Los Angeles Sparks	Minnesota Lynx	Phoenix Mercury	San Antonio Silver Stars	Seattle Storm	Tulsa Shock
← 2010 • WNBA season • 2012 →

2011 WNBA Playoffs

Contents

Format[edit]

Tiebreak procedures[edit]

Two-team tie[edit]

Three or more-team tie[edit]

Playoff qualifying[edit]

Eastern Conference[edit]

Western Conference[edit]

Bracket[edit]

Eastern Conference[edit]

Conference Semifinals[edit]

(2) Connecticut Sun vs. (3) Atlanta Dream[edit]

(1) Indiana Fever vs. (4) New York Liberty[edit]

Conference Finals[edit]

(1) Indiana Fever vs. (3) Atlanta Dream[edit]

Western Conference[edit]

Conference Semifinals[edit]

(1) Minnesota Lynx vs. (4) San Antonio Silver Stars[edit]

(2) Seattle Storm vs. (3) Phoenix Mercury[edit]

Conference Finals[edit]

(1) Minnesota Lynx vs. (3) Phoenix Mercury[edit]

WNBA Finals[edit]

Minnesota Lynx vs. Atlanta Dream[edit]

References[edit]

External links[edit]

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