2016 WNBA playoffs

{{short description|Professional women's basketball tournament}} {{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}} {{Infobox basketball tournament season | year = 2016 | title = [[WNBA playoffs]] | image = [[File:2016 WNBA Playoffs Logo.jpg|300px|center]] | caption = | dates = September 21 – October 20, 2016 | winners = '''[[Los Angeles Sparks]]''' ([[2016 WNBA Finals|Finals]] champion) | attendance = 8,719 per game | continental_cup_title = Higher seed finalist | continental_cup_qualifiers = [[Minnesota Lynx]] (Coach: [[Cheryl Reeve]]) | continental_cup_title1 = Lower seed finalist | continental_cup_qualifiers1 = [[Los Angeles Sparks]] (Coach: [[Brian Agler]]) | prev_season = [[2015 WNBA playoffs|2015]] | next_season = [[2017 WNBA playoffs|2017]] }} The '''2016 [[WNBA playoffs]]''' is the postseason tournament of the [[WNBA]]'s [[2016 WNBA season|2016 season]].

==Format== The WNBA changed its playoff format in 2016.<ref>{{cite news|title=WNBA Approves Significant Changes to Regular-Season and Playoff Formats|url=http://www.wnba.com/news/regular-season-playoff-format-changes-2016-season/|access-date=1 Oct 2016|publisher=WNBA}}</ref> Following the WNBA regular season, eight teams in the entire league qualified for the playoffs and were seeded one to eight.

Regular season records determined the seedings of the teams. The team with the best record received seed one, the team with the next best record received seed two, and so on. The top two seeds get double byes, while the next two seeds get first-round byes.

These seedings were used to create a bracket that determines the match-ups throughout the playoffs. The first round of the playoffs consisted of two match-ups based on the seedings (5-8 and 6-7). The two winners advanced to the second round with a match-up between the number 3 seed and the lower of the advancing seeds and another match-up between the number 4 seed and the other first round winner. The winners of the first two rounds advanced to the semifinals, where the lower ranked seed of the winners faced the number 1 seed, while the other remaining team faced the number 2 seed.

The first two rounds are single elimination games played on the higher ranking seed's home court. The semifinals and WNBA Finals are best-of-five series played in a 2-2-1 format, meaning the team with home-court advantage (better record) hosts games 1, 2, and 5 while their opponent hosts games 3 and 4.

===Tiebreak procedures=== # Better winning percentage among all head-to-head games involving tied teams. # Better winning percentage against teams within conference (for Finals only: better record against teams in # the opposite conference). # 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 (or draw of lots, if at least 3 teams are still tied after the first 4 tiebreakers fail).

==Playoff qualifying==

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%; text-align:center" |- !rowspan=2|Seed !!rowspan=2|Team !!rowspan=2|Record !!colspan=3|Clinched |- !Playoff berth !! Bye to Semis !! Top Record |- | 1 || align=left|[[2016 Minnesota Lynx season|Minnesota Lynx]] || 28–6|| July 25 || September 6 || September 12 |- | 2 || align=left|[[2016 Los Angeles Sparks season|Los Angeles Sparks]] || 26–8 || July 25 || September 6 ||— |- | 3 || align=left|[[2016 New York Liberty season|New York Liberty]] || 21–13 || September 7 ||—||— |- | 4 || align=left|[[2016 Chicago Sky season|Chicago Sky]]|| 18–16 || September 10 ||—||— |- | 5 || align=left|[[2016 Indiana Fever season|Indiana Fever]] || 17–17{{#tag:ref|Indiana Fever clinched #5 seed over Atlanta Dream based on a 2–1 regular season series record.|group = lower-alpha|name = note_a}}|| September 10 ||—||— |- | 6 || align=left|[[2016 Atlanta Dream season|Atlanta Dream]] || 17–17<ref group="lower-alpha" name="note_a" />|| September 10||—||— |- | 7 || align=left|[[2016 Seattle Storm season|Seattle Storm]] || 16–18{{#tag:ref|Seattle Storm clinched #7 seed over Phoenix Mercury based on a 2–1 regular season series record.|group = lower-alpha|name = note_b}} || September 11 ||—||— |- | 8 || align=left|[[2016 Phoenix Mercury season|Phoenix Mercury]] || 16–18<ref group="lower-alpha" name="note_b" /> || September 14 ||—||— |- |}

;Notes {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}}

==Bracket==

{{8TeamBracket-Stepladder | autolegs = y | score-width = 32 | RD1='''First round''' Single elimination (Sept. 21) | RD2='''Second round''' Single elimination (Sept. 24 and 25) | RD3='''Semifinals''' Best-of-5 (Sept. 28 – Oct. 6) | RD4='''[[2016 WNBA Finals|WNBA Finals]]''' Best-of-5 (Oct. 9 – 20)

| RD4-seed1 = 1 | RD4-team1=''[[2016 Minnesota Lynx season|Minnesota Lynx]]'' | RD4-score1= 2 | RD4-seed2 = 2 | RD4-team2='''[[2016 Los Angeles Sparks season|Los Angeles Sparks]]''' | RD4-score2= '''3''' }} Note: Teams re-seeded after the second round and semifinals. {{ubl |'''Bold''' – Game or series winner |''Italic'' – Team with home-court advantage }}

==First round== :''All times are in [[Eastern Time Zone|Eastern Daylight Time]] ([[UTC−4]])''

=== (5) Indiana Fever vs. (8) Phoenix Mercury === {{Basketballbox |bg = #eee |date = September 21 |time = 6:00 PM |place = [[Bankers Life Fieldhouse]], [[Indianapolis]], [[Indiana]] |attendance = 6,282 |referee = Tom Nunez, Byron Jarrett, Maj Forsberg |TV = [[ESPNews]] |team1 = '''[[Phoenix Mercury]]''' |score1 = '''89''' |team2 = [[Indiana Fever]] |score2 = 78 |report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160921/PHOIND/ Game 1] |Q1 = 18-18 |Q2 = 17-'''20''' |Q3 = '''24'''-19 |Q4 = '''30'''-21 |points1 = [[Diana Taurasi|Taurasi]] 20 |points2 = [[Marissa Coleman|Coleman]] & [[Tamika Catchings|Catchings]] 13 |rebounds1 = [[Brittney Griner|Griner]] 9 |rebounds2 = [[Tamika Catchings|Catchings]] 10 |assist1 = [[Penny Taylor|Taylor]] 4 |assist2 = [[Briann January|January]] 9 |series = Phoenix wins series 1-0 }}

{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |+Regular-season series |- !Indiana won 2–1 in the regular-season series |- | {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = May 18, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160518/PHOIND/ Report] | team1 = [[Phoenix Mercury]] |score1=93 | team2 = '''[[Indiana Fever]]''' |score2='''97''' | place = [[Bankers Life Fieldhouse]], [[Indianapolis|Indianapolis, IN]] }} {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = July 8, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160708/INDPHO/ Report] | team1 = '''[[Indiana Fever]] |score1=78''' | team2 = [[Phoenix Mercury]] |score2=60 | place = [[Talking Stick Resort Arena]], [[Phoenix, Arizona|Phoenix, AZ]] }} {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = August 30, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160830/PHOIND/ Report] | team1 = '''[[Phoenix Mercury]] | score1=79''' | team2 = [[Indiana Fever]] |score2=65 | place = [[Bankers Life Fieldhouse]], [[Indianapolis|Indianapolis, IN]] }} |}

=== (6) Atlanta Dream vs. (7) Seattle Storm === {{Basketballbox |bg = #eee |date = September 21 |time = 8:00 PM |place = [[Hank McCamish Pavilion]], [[Atlanta]], [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]] |attendance = 2,553 |referee = Eric Brewton, Amy Bonner, Jeff Wooten |TV = [[ESPNews]] |team1 = [[Seattle Storm]] |score1 = 85 |team2 = '''[[Atlanta Dream]]''' |score2 = '''94''' |report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160921/SEAATL/ Game 1] |Q1 = 18–'''19''' |Q2 = '''27'''–18 |Q3 = 21–'''29''' |Q4 = 19-'''28''' |points1 = [[Jewell Loyd|Loyd]] 24 |points2 = [[Angel McCoughtry|McCoughtry]] 37 |rebounds1 = [[Breanna Stewart|Steward]] & [[Crystal Langhorne|Langhorne]] 7 |rebounds2 = [[Elizabeth Williams (basketball)|Williams]] 16 |assist1 = [[Sue Bird|Bird]] 7 |assist2 = [[Angel McCoughtry|McCoughtry]] & [[Layshia Clarendon|Clarendon]] 7 |series = Atlanta wins series 1-0 }}

{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |+Regular-season series |- !Seattle won 2–1 in the regular-season series |- | {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = June 28, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160628/ATLSEA/ Report] | team1 = [[Atlanta Dream]] |score1=81 | team2 = '''[[Seattle Storm]]''' |score2='''84''' | place = [[KeyArena]], [[Seattle|Seattle, WA]] }} {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = July 5, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160705/SEAATL/ Report] | team1 = [[Seattle Storm]] |score1=64 | team2 = '''[[Atlanta Dream]] |score2=77''' | place = [[Philips Arena]], [[Atlanta|Atlanta, GA]] }} {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = September 4, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160904/SEAATL/ Report] | team1 = '''[[Seattle Storm]] | score1=91''' | team2 = [[Atlanta Dream]] |score2=82 | place = [[Philips Arena]], [[Atlanta|Atlanta, GA]] }} |}

==Second round== :''All times are in [[Eastern Time Zone|Eastern Daylight Time]] ([[UTC−4]])''

=== (3) New York Liberty vs. (8) Phoenix Mercury === {{Basketballbox |bg = #eee |date = September 24 |time = 7:00 PM |place = [[Madison Square Garden]], [[New York City|New York, NY]] |attendance = 10,227 |referee = Michael Price, Jeff Smith, Tom Mauer, Cheryl Flores |TV = [[NBA TV]] |team1 = '''[[Phoenix Mercury]]''' |score1 = '''101''' |team2 = [[New York Liberty]] |score2 = 94 |report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160924/PHONYL/ Game 1] |Q1 = 25-25 |Q2 = '''27'''–16 |Q3 = 16–'''26''' |Q4 = '''33'''-27 |points1 = [[Diana Taurasi|Taurasi]] 30 |points2 = [[Tanisha Wright|Wright]] 21 |rebounds1 = [[Brittney Griner|Griner]] 10 |rebounds2 = [[Tina Charles (basketball)|Charles]] 9 |assist1 = [[Brittney Griner|Griner]] 5 |assist2 = [[Tanisha Wright|Wright]] & [[Tina Charles (basketball)|Charles]] 5 |series = Phoenix wins series 1-0 }}

{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |+Regular-season series |- !New York won 2–1 in the regular-season series |- | {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = June 26, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160626/PHONYL/ Report] | team1 = '''[[Phoenix Mercury]]''' |score1='''104''' | team2 = [[New York Liberty]] |score2=97 (OT) | place = [[Madison Square Garden]], [[New York City|New York, NY]] }} {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = July 1, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160701/NYLPHO/ Report] | team1 = '''[[New York Liberty]] |score1=99''' | team2 = [[Phoenix Mercury]] |score2=88 | place = [[Talking Stick Resort Arena]], [[Phoenix, Arizona|Phoenix, AZ]] }} {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = September 3, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160903/PHONYL/ Report] | team1 = [[Phoenix Mercury]] | score1=70 | team2 = '''[[New York Liberty]] |score2=92''' | place = [[Madison Square Garden]], [[New York City|New York, NY]] }} |}

=== (4) Chicago Sky vs. (6) Atlanta Dream === {{Basketballbox |bg = #eee |date = September 25 |time = 12:00 PM |place = [[Allstate Arena]] [[Rosemont, Illinois]] |attendance = 3,922 |referee = Roy Gulbeyan, Sue Blauch, Kurt Walker |TV = [[ESPN2]] |team1 = [[Atlanta Dream]] |score1 = 98 |team2 = '''[[Chicago Sky]]''' |score2 = '''108''' |report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160925/ATLCHI/ Game 1] |Q1 = 25-'''37''' |Q2 = '''25'''–19 |Q3 = 20–'''31''' |Q4 = '''28'''-21 |points1 = [[Tiffany Hayes|Hayes]] 30 |points2 = [[Courtney Vandersloot|Vandersloot]] 21 |rebounds1 = [[Elizabeth Williams (basketball)|Williams]] 9 |rebounds2 = [[Jessica Breland|Breland]] 16 |assist1 = [[Angel McCoughtry|McCoughtry]] 9 |assist2 = [[Courtney Vandersloot|Vandersloot]] 13 |series = Chicago wins series 1-0 }}

{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |+Regular-season series |- !Atlanta won 2–1 in the regular-season series |- | {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = May 22, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160522/CHIATL/ Report] | team1 = [[Chicago Sky]] |score1=81 | team2 = '''[[Atlanta Dream]]''' |score2='''87''' | place = [[Philips Arena]], [[Atlanta|Atlanta, GA]] }} {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = June 17, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160617/CHIATL/ Report] | team1 = [[Chicago Sky]] |score1=97 | team2 = '''[[Atlanta Dream]] |score2=101''' | place = [[Philips Arena]], [[Atlanta|Atlanta, GA]] }} {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = August 26, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160826/ATLCHI/ Report] | team1 = [[Atlanta Dream]] | score1=82 | team2 = '''[[Chicago Sky]] |score2=90''' | place = [[Allstate Arena]], [[Rosemont, Illinois|Rosemont, IL]] }} |}

==Semifinals== :''All times are in [[Eastern Time Zone|Eastern Daylight Time]] ([[UTC−4]])''

=== (1) Minnesota Lynx vs. (8) Phoenix Mercury === {{Basketballbox |bg = #eee |date = September 28 |time = 8:00 PM |place = [[Xcel Energy Center]], [[Saint Paul, Minnesota]] |attendance = 9,013 |referee = Roy Gulbeyan, Eric Brewton, Tiffany Bird |TV = [[ESPN2]] |team1 = [[Phoenix Mercury]] |score1 = 95 |team2 = '''[[Minnesota Lynx]]''' |score2 = '''113''' |report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160928/PHOMIN/ Game 1] |Q1 = 23–'''24''' |Q2 = 15-'''31''' |Q3 = 34-'''36''' |Q4 = '''23'''–22 |points1 = [[Diana Taurasi|Taurasi]] 25 |points2 = [[Maya Moore|Moore]] 31 |rebounds1 = [[Penny Taylor|Taylor]] 5 |rebounds2 = [[Sylvia Fowles|Fowles]] 10 |assist1 = [[Candice Dupree|Dupree]] & [[Lindsey Harding|Harding]] 5 |assist2 = [[Seimone Augustus|Augustus]] & [[Lindsay Whalen|Whalen]] 7 }} {{Basketballbox |bg = #fff |date = September 30 |time = 8:00 PM |place = [[Xcel Energy Center]], [[Saint Paul, Minnesota]] |attendance = 11,923 |referee = Byron Jarrett Jeff Smith, Maj Forsberg |TV = [[ESPNews]] |team1 = [[Phoenix Mercury]] |score1 = 86 |team2 = '''[[Minnesota Lynx]]''' |score2 = '''96''' |report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160930/PHOMIN/ Game 2] |Q1 = 24–'''35''' |Q2 = '''23'''-20 |Q3 = 18–'''22''' |Q4 = '''21'''–19 |points1 = [[Diana Taurasi|Taurasi]] 31 |points2 = [[Maya Moore|Moore]] 26 |rebounds1 = [[Isabelle Harrison|Harrison]] 9 |rebounds2 = [[Rebekkah Brunson|Brunson]] 11 |assist1 = [[Penny Taylor|Taylor]] 5 |assist2 = [[Maya Moore|Moore]] 5 }} {{Basketballbox |bg = #eee |date = October 2 |time = 5:00 PM |place = [[Talking Stick Resort Arena]], [[Phoenix, Arizona|Phoenix, AZ]] |attendance = 9,631 |referee = Sue Blauch, Kurt Walker, Michael Price |TV = [[ESPN]] |team1 = '''[[Minnesota Lynx]]''' |score1 = '''82''' |team2= [[Phoenix Mercury]] |score2 = 67 |report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20161002/MINPHO/ Game 3] |Q1 = 18–'''23''' |Q2 = '''21'''–15 |Q3 = '''26'''–15 |Q4 = '''17'''–14 |points1 = [[Maya Moore|Moore]] 20 |points2 = [[Diana Taurasi|Taurasi]] & [[DeWanna Bonner|Bonner]] 12 |rebounds1 = [[Rebekkah Brunson|Brunson]] 9 |rebounds2 = [[Brittney Griner|Griner]] & [[Isabelle Harrison|Harrison]] 7 |assist1 = [[Lindsay Whalen|Whalen]] 5 |assist2 = [[Marta Xargay|Xargay]] 5 |series = Minnesota wins series 3-0 }}

{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |+Regular-season series |- !Minnesota won 3–0 in the regular-season series |- | {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = May 14, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160514/PHOMIN/ Report] | team1 = [[Phoenix Mercury]] |score1=76 | team2 = '''[[Minnesota Lynx]]''' |score2='''95''' | place = [[Target Center]], [[Minneapolis|Minneapolis, MN]] }} {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = May 25, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160525/MINPHO/ Report] | team1 = '''[[Minnesota Lynx]] |score1=85''' | team2 = [[Phoenix Mercury]] |score2=78 | place = [[Talking Stick Resort Arena]], [[Phoenix, Arizona|Phoenix, AZ]] }} {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = June 7, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160607/PHOMIN/ Report] | team1 = [[Phoenix Mercury]] | score1=81 | team2 = '''[[Minnesota Lynx]] |score2=89''' | place = [[Target Center]], [[Minneapolis|Minneapolis, MN]] }} |}

=== (2) Los Angeles Sparks vs. (4) Chicago Sky === {{Basketballbox |bg = #eee |date = September 28 |time = 9:00 PM |place = [[Walter Pyramid]], [[Long Beach, California|Long Beach, CA]] |attendance = 3,894 |referee = Michael Price, Cheryl Flores, Tom Mauer |TV = [[ESPN2]] |team1 = [[Chicago Sky]] |score1 = 75 |team2 = '''[[Los Angeles Sparks]]''' |score2 = '''95''' |report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160928/CHILAS/ Game 1] |Q1 = 20–'''22''' |Q2 = 15-'''30''' |Q3 = '''26'''-23 |Q4 = 14-'''20''' |points1 = [[Jamierra Faulkner|Faulkner]] 13 |points2 = [[Candace Parker|Parker]] 30 |rebounds1 = [[Jessica Breland|Breland]] 7 |rebounds2 = [[Nneka Ogwumike|Ogwumike]] 10 |assist1 = [[Courtney Vandersloot|Vandersloot]] 5 |assist2 = [[Nneka Ogwumike|Ogwumike]] 6 }} {{Basketballbox |bg = #fff |date = September 30 |time = 9:00 PM |place = [[Staples Center]], [[Los Angeles|Los Angeles, CA]] |attendance = 7,855 |referee = Eric Brewton, Amy Bonner, Billy Smith |TV = [[ESPNews]] |team1 = [[Chicago Sky]] |score1 = 84 |team2 = '''[[Los Angeles Sparks]]''' |score2 = '''99''' |report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160930/CHILAS/ Game 2] |Q1 = 27–'''28''' |Q2 = 15-'''29''' |Q3 = 17-'''21''' |Q4 = 25–'''21''' |points1 = [[Clarissa Dos Santos|Dos Santos]] 15 |points2 = [[Candace Parker|Parker]], [[Jantel Lavender|Lavender]] 20 |rebounds1 = [[Jessica Breland|Breland]] 9 |rebounds2 = [[Candace Parker|Parker]] 12 |assist1 = [[Allie Quigley|Quigley]] 5 |assist2 = [[Candace Parker|Parker]] 8 }} {{Basketballbox |bg = #eee |date = October 2 |time = 3:00 PM |place = [[Allstate Arena]] [[Rosemont, Illinois]] |attendance = 5,018 |referee = Maj Forsberg, Tom Nunez, Jeff Wooten |TV = [[ESPN]] |team1 = [[Los Angeles Sparks]] |score1 = 66 |team2= '''[[Chicago Sky]]''' |score2 = '''70''' |report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20161002/LASCHI/ Game 3] |Q1 = '''23'''–14 |Q2 = 16–16 |Q3 = 8–'''19''' |Q4 = 19–'''21''' |points1 = [[Nneka Ogwumike|Ogwumike]] 22 |points2 = [[Courtney Vandersloot|Vandersloot]] 17 |rebounds1 = [[Candace Parker|Parker]] 15 |rebounds2 = [[Imani Boyette|Boyette]] 11 |assist1 = [[Candace Parker|Parker]] 6 |assist2 = [[Jamierra Faulkner|Faulkner]] & [[Courtney Vandersloot|Vandersloot]] 5 }} {{Basketballbox |bg = #fff |date = October 4 |time = 8:00 PM |place = [[Allstate Arena]] [[Rosemont, Illinois]] |attendance = 3,841 |referee = Sue Blauch, Tiffany Bird, Roy Gulbeyan |TV = [[ESPN2]] |team1 = '''[[Los Angeles Sparks]]''' |score1 = '''95''' |team2= [[Chicago Sky]] |score2 = 75 |report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20161004/LASCHI/ Game 4] |Q1 = '''23'''–11 |Q2 = '''32'''–20 |Q3 = 14–'''28''' |Q4 = '''26'''–16 |points1 = [[Candace Parker|Parker]] 29 |points2 = [[Cappie Pondexter|Pondexter]] 19 |rebounds1 = [[Nneka Ogwumike|Ogwumike]] 9 |rebounds2 = [[Imani Boyette|Boyette]] 10 |assist1 = [[Chelsea Gray|Gray]] 7 |assist2 = [[Tamera Young|Young]] 6 |series = Los Angeles wins series 3-1 }}

{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |+Regular-season series |- !Los Angeles won 3–0 in the regular-season series |- | {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = May 24, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160524/LASCHI/ Report] | team1 = '''[[Los Angeles Sparks]]''' |score1='''93''' | team2 = [[Chicago Sky]] |score2=80 | place = [[Allstate Arena]], [[Rosemont, Illinois|Rosemont, IL]] }} {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = June 14, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160614/CHILAS/ Report] | team1 = [[Chicago Sky]] |score1=85 | team2 = '''[[Los Angeles Sparks]] |score2=98''' | place = [[Staples Center]], [[Los Angeles|Los Angeles, CA]] }} {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = July 13, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160713/LASCHI/ Report] | team1 = '''[[Los Angeles Sparks]] | score1=77''' | team2 = [[Chicago Sky]] |score2=67 | place = [[Allstate Arena]], [[Rosemont, Illinois|Rosemont, IL]] }} |}

== WNBA Finals == {{Main|2016 WNBA Finals}}

:''All times are in [[Eastern Time Zone|Eastern Daylight Time]] ([[UTC−4]])''

=== (1) Minnesota Lynx vs. (2) Los Angeles Sparks ===

{{Basketballbox |bg = #eee |date = October 9 |time = 3:00 PM |place = [[Target Center]], [[Minneapolis]], [[Minnesota|MN]] |attendance = 12,113 |referee = Maj Forsberg, Jeff Wooten, Tom Nunez |TV = [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] |team1 = '''[[Los Angeles Sparks]]''' |score1 = '''78''' |team2 = [[Minnesota Lynx]] |score2 = 76 |report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20161009/LASMIN/ Game 1] |Q1 = '''21'''–18 |Q2 = 13–'''18''' |Q3 = 22–'''24''' |Q4 = '''22'''–16 |points1 = [[Kristi Toliver|Toliver]] & [[Nneka Ogwumike|Ogwumike]] 19 |points2 = ''three tied'' 18 |rebounds1 = [[Candace Parker|Parker]] & [[Nneka Ogwumike|Ogwumike]] 9 |rebounds2 = [[Sylvia Fowles|Fowles]] 13 |assist1 = [[Chelsea Gray|Gray]] 4 |assist2 = [[Lindsay Whalen|Whalen]] 6 }} {{Basketballbox |bg = #fff |date = October 11 |time = 8:00 PM |place = [[Target Center]], [[Minneapolis]], [[Minnesota|MN]] |attendance = 12,832 |referee = Roy Gulbeyan, Michael Price, Billy Smith |TV = [[ESPN2]] |team1 = [[Los Angeles Sparks]] |score1 = 60 |team2 = '''[[Minnesota Lynx]]''' |score2 = '''79''' |report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20161011/LASMIN/ Game 2] |Q1 = 14–'''18''' |Q2 = 11–'''21''' |Q3 = '''21'''–15 |Q4 = 14–'''25''' |points1 = [[Nneka Ogwumike|Ogwumike]] 14 |points2 = [[Maya Moore|Moore]] 21 |rebounds1 = [[Nneka Ogwumike|Ogwumike]] 12 |rebounds2 = [[Sylvia Fowles|Fowles]] 15 |assist1 = ''three tied'' 3 |assist2 = [[Sylvia Fowles|Fowles]] 4 }} {{Basketballbox |bg = #eee |date = October 14 |time = 9:00 PM |place = [[Galen Center]], [[Los Angeles]], [[California|CA]] |attendance = 8,093 |referee = Tom Mauer, Eric Brewton, Amy Bonner |TV = [[ESPN2]] |team1 = [[Minnesota Lynx]] |score1 = 75 |team2 = '''[[Los Angeles Sparks]]''' |score2 = '''92''' |report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20161014/MINLAS/ Game 3] |Q1 = 17–'''32''' |Q2 = '''23'''–16 |Q3 = 18–'''22''' |Q4 = 17–'''22''' |points1 = [[Sylvia Fowles|Fowles]], [[Rebekkah Brunson|Brunson]] 14 |points2 = [[Candace Parker|Parker]] 24 |rebounds1 = [[Maya Moore|Moore]] 7 |rebounds2 = [[Candace Parker|Parker]], [[Nneka Ogwumike|Ogwumike]] 9 |assist1 = [[Maya Moore|Moore]] 5 |assist2 = [[Alana Beard|Beard]] 7 }} {{Basketballbox |bg = #fff |date = October 16 |time = 8:30 PM |place = [[Staples Center]], [[Los Angeles]], [[California|CA]] |attendance = 12,885 |referee = Roy Gulbeyan, Maj Forsberg, Kurt Walker |TV = [[ESPN]] |team1 = '''[[Minnesota Lynx]]''' |score1 = '''85''' |team2 = [[Los Angeles Sparks]] |score2 = 79 |report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20161016/MINLAS/ Game 4] |Q1 = '''22'''–20 |Q2 = '''24'''–20 |Q3 = 19–19 |Q4 = 20–20 |points1 = [[Maya Moore|Moore]] 31 |points2 = [[Chelsea Gray|Gray]] 20 |rebounds1 = [[Sylvia Fowles|Fowles]] 13 |rebounds2 = [[Nneka Ogwumike|Ogwumike]] 8 |assist1 = [[Seimone Augustus|Augustus]], [[Maya Moore|Moore]] 5 |assist2 = [[Alana Beard|Beard]] 4 }} {{Basketballbox |bg = #eee |date = October 20 |time = 8:00 PM |place = [[Target Center]], [[Minneapolis]], [[Minnesota|MN]] |attendance = 19,423 |referee = Amy Bonner, Eric Brewton, Thomas Nunez |TV = [[ESPN2]] |team1 = '''[[Los Angeles Sparks]]''' |score1 = '''77''' |team2 = [[Minnesota Lynx]] |score2 = 76 |report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20161020/LASMIN/ Game 5] |Q1 = 17–'''18''' |Q2 = 11–'''16''' |Q3 = '''26'''–21 |Q4 = '''23'''–21 |points1 = [[Candace Parker|Parker]] 28 |points2 = [[Maya Moore|Moore]] 23 |rebounds1 = [[Candace Parker|Parker]], [[Nneka Ogwumike|Ogwumike]] 12 |rebounds2 = [[Rebekkah Brunson|Brunson]], [[Sylvia Fowles|Fowles]] 9 |assist1 = [[Alana Beard|Beard]] 6 |assist2 = [[Maya Moore|Moore]] 11 |series = Los Angeles wins series 3–2 }}

{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |+Regular-season series |- !Minnesota won 2–1 in the regular-season series |- | {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = June 21, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160621/MINLAS/ Report] | team1 = '''[[Minnesota Lynx]]''' |score1= '''72''' | team2 = [[Los Angeles Sparks]] |score2= 69 | place = [[Staples Center]], [[Los Angeles]], [[California|CA]] }} {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = June 24, 2016 | report = [https://www.wnba.com/game/20160624/LASMIN/ Report] | team1 = '''[[Los Angeles Sparks]] |score1= 94''' | team2 = [[Minnesota Lynx]] |score2= 76 | place = [[Target Center]], [[Minneapolis]], [[Minnesota|MN]] }} {{basketballbox | bg=#fffa | date = September 6, 2016 | report = [http://www.wnba.com/game/20160906/MINLAS/ Report] | team1 = '''[[Minnesota Lynx]] |score1= 77''' | team2 = [[Los Angeles Sparks]] |score2= 74 | place = [[Staples Center]], [[Los Angeles]], [[California|CA]] }} |}

==References== {{reflist}}

[[Category:WNBA playoffs]] [[Category:2016 WNBA season]]