Skip to main content

2020 WNBA Playoffs: Matchups, Schedule, Start Times

The Las Vegas Aces have the top WNBA playoff spot after beating the Seattle Storm to close out the regular season.

The field is set for the 2020 WNBA playoffs.

Postseason seeding came down to the wire as the league's shortened 22-game regular season concluded on Sept. 13. The Las Vegas Aces locked up the top seed of the postseason in a victory over the Seattle Storm, while the Washington Mystics clinched the final playoff spot in a win over the Atlanta Dream. 

The WNBA playoffs are set to begin on Tuesday, Sept. 15 with two single-elimination games between the bottom four seeds. The two winners of the first-round games will then be re-seeded for the second-round single-elimination matchups on Sept. 18, with the lower seed facing the No. 3 Sparks and the higher seed facing the No. 4 Lynx. 

The best-of-five semifinals series will run from Sept. 20-29 between the second-round winners and top seeds Las Vegas and Seattle. The finals are then set to begin on Oct. 2 in a best-of-five series with a champion to be crowned by Oct. 11.

Here are the matchups, dates and start times for the 2020 WNBA playoffs.

First Round: Single Elimination 

  • No. 5 Phoenix Mercury vs. No. 8 Washington Mystics—Tuesday, Sept. 15, 9 p.m. EST, ESPN2 
  • No. 6 Chicago Sky vs. No. 7 Connecticut Sun—Tuesday, Sept. 15, 7 p.m. EST, ESPN2

Second Round: Single Elimination 

  • No. 4 Minnesota Lynx vs. No. 5 Phoenix Mercury—Thursday, Sept. 17, 7 p.m. EST, ESPN2
  • No. 3 Los Angeles Sparks vs. No. 7 Connecticut Sun—Thursday, Sept. 17, 9 p.m. EST, ESPN2

Semifinals: Best-of-Five

No. 1 Las Vegas Aces vs. No. 7 Connecticut Sun

  • Game 1: Sunday, Sept. 20—1 p.m. ET (ESPN)
  • Game 2: Tuesday, Sept. 22—7 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
  • Game 3: Thursday, Sept. 24—9:30 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
  • Game 4: Sunday, Sept. 27—1 p.m. ET (ESPN)
  • Game 5: Tuesday, Sept. 29—Time TBD

No. 2 Seattle Storm vs. No. 4 Minnesota Lynx

  • Game 1: Tuesday, Sept. 22—9 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
  • Game 2: Thursday, Sept. 24—7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
  • Game 3: Sunday, Sept. 27—3 p.m. ET (ESPN3)

WNBA Finals: No. 1 Las Vegas Aces vs. No. 2 Seattle Storm

  • Game 1: Friday, Oct. 2—7 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
  • Game 2: Sunday, Oct. 4—3 p.m. ET (ABC)
  • Game 3: Tuesday, Oct. 6—7 p.m. ET (ESPN)
  • Game 4*: Thursday, Oct. 8—7 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
  • Game 5*: Sunday, Oct. 11—3 p.m. ET (ABC)

*if necessary