This year's WNBA championship was the first time a team from the Pacific Northwest has won the title. The Chicago Sky, a wildcard team, finished the regular season as sixth seed. However, they beat the Phoenix Mercury in Finals. Kahleah Cupper was named Finals MVP.
Washington Mystics vs. Seattle Storm
In the WNBA Championship 2018 finals, the Washington Mystics will play the Seattle Storm. Storm returns to the Finals after an 8-year absence. The team lost Lauren Jackson but has restocked their lineup with Jewell and Breanna Loyd.
In the regular season, The Seattle Storm was the league leader in 3-point accuracy. The Mystics were second with 29.8%. This level of accuracy continued into the playoffs.
Breanna Stewart wins WNBA Finals MVP award
Breanna Stewart, a Seattle Storm guard has won the WNBA Finals MVP trophy. The 24-year-old led her team to the title by averaging 28.3 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. The award was given to her for her outstanding play in helping the Storm win the league title in 2020. She was proud of her MVP award, arriving at the media availability postgame with champagne in her hand. She also wore a pair of celebratory goggles.
A two-time WNBA MVP, Stewart led the Storm to their second championship in less than two years. She was outstanding in Game 1, scoring 37 points with 15 rebounds. That made her the first player to average 35 points in the Finals. She finished the series averaging 28.3 points and shot 65 percent from the field. Stewart is also a Hall of Fame nominee.
Phoenix Sun's Diana Taurasi wins first WNBA title
Diana Taurasi is a former NBA player and now the leading scorer in the WNBA. She has been awarded the MVP award and three WNBA titles. She has five WNBA scoring championships and four Olympic golds medals. She also has three NCAA championships won with the University of Connecticut. She has also won six Euroleague Championships.
Diana Taurasi became the most decorated WNBA player after she won her first WNBA Championship. The 22-year old also won her first WNBA championship. This was the beginning of a long, successful career. Taurasi was the first player to win the championship with a Western Conference team. She will be inducted into league's Hall of Fame by 2020.
Seattle Storm's Sue Bird leads Seattle to victory
Sue Bird leads the Seattle Storm towards their first WNBA Championship. The Storm won the Western Conference standings with a record of 26-8. The team was led by Bird, who was a top pick in 2001. Her offensive efficiency and quickness allowed the Storm to dominate the Washington Mystics on the perimeter. The Storm shot 13 for 26 from three-point range and outscored the Mystics by 21 points. In Game 3, the Mystics only shot 8 of 23 from behind-the-arc and closed the series with an impressive 11 for 60.
Bird was the Storm's main star during the playoffs. In the fourth quarter of Game 5, she was a big winner against the Phoenix Mercury. Bird was wearing a mask for a broken nose but she scored 10 points and took out clutch jumpers to send Mercury home.