The Connecticut Sun have reached their moment of truth in the 2019 WNBA regular season.
The Sun have entered the final week of the regular season in contention for the top seed in the WNBA playoffs. The Sun trail the Washington Mystics for first place in the Eastern Conference standings and best overall record with three games remaining on both teams’ schedules.
By winning one more game, Connecticut will clinch at least a top-two finish and a double-bye heading into the best-of-five WNBA playoff semifinals. However, first place would net the Sun a double-bye and home-court advantage throughout the postseason. The Sun’s contrasting home and away records, 14-1 at Mohegan Sun Arena and 8-8 on their travels, demonstrate how important first place might be to fulfilling the team’s championship aspirations.
So here’s how Connecticut can clinch first place, per WNBA.com’s Brian Martin.
“… if the Mystics lose one of their final three games, that opens the door for the Sun, which owns the head-to-head tiebreaker with the Mystics. If the Mystics lose a game and the Sun win out, Connecticut would earn the No. 1 seed and home court in a potential Finals matchup. ….
“The schedules for the Mystics and Sun are similar to close out the season; both play playoff-bound Chicago at home, both play lottery-bound Dallas at home and they each face another lottery-bound team (Washington at New York, Connecticut at Indiana) on the road, so strength of schedule offers no advantage for either team.”
The Mystics will visit the New York Liberty on Tuesday night, and the Sun will host the Dallas Wings on Wednesday night. The Sun and Mystics will play their final two games on the same dates, Friday and Sunday, with Washington hosting Dallas and the Chicago Sky, while Connecticut hosts the Sky then will visit the Indiana Fever in its regular-season finale.
