The 2000 WNBA Playoffs was the postseason for the Women's National Basketball Association's 2000 season which ended with the Western Conference champion Houston Comets beating the Eastern Conference champion New York Liberty, 2-0. Cynthia Cooper was named the MVP of the Finals.
| Dates | August 11–26, 2000 |
|---|---|
| Final positions | |
| Champions | Houston Comets (Finals Champion) |
| East champion | New York Liberty (Coach: Richie Adubato) |
| West champion | Houston Comets (Coach: Van Chancellor) |
Regular season standings
editEastern Conference
| Eastern Conference | W | L | PCT | Conf. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York Liberty x | 20 | 12 | .625 | 14–7 | – |
| Cleveland Rockers x | 17 | 15 | .531 | 13–8 | 3.0 |
| Orlando Miracle x | 16 | 16 | .500 | 13–8 | 4.0 |
| Washington Mystics x | 14 | 18 | .438 | 13–8 | 6.0 |
| Detroit Shock o | 14 | 18 | .438 | 10–11 | 6.0 |
| Miami Sol o | 13 | 19 | .406 | 9–12 | 7.0 |
| Indiana Fever o | 9 | 23 | .281 | 7–14 | 11.0 |
| Charlotte Sting o | 8 | 24 | .250 | 5–16 | 12.0 |
Western Conference
| Western Conference | W | L | PCT | Conf. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Sparks x | 28 | 4 | .875 | 17–4 | – |
| Houston Comets x | 27 | 5 | .844 | 17–4 | 1.0 |
| Sacramento Monarchs x | 21 | 11 | .656 | 13–8 | 7.0 |
| Phoenix Mercury x | 20 | 12 | .625 | 11–10 | 8.0 |
| Utah Starzz o | 18 | 14 | .563 | 13–8 | 10.0 |
| Minnesota Lynx o | 15 | 17 | .469 | 5–16 | 13.0 |
| Portland Fire o | 10 | 22 | .313 | 4–17 | 18.0 |
| Seattle Storm o | 6 | 26 | .188 | 4–17 | 22.0 |
Note: Teams with an "X" clinched playoff spots.
Playoffs
editBracket
editThere were 16 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the four teams with the best record in each conference were seeded one to four.
| Conference Semi-Finals Best-of-3 | Conference Finals Best-of-3 | WNBA Finals Best-of-3 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | New York | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | Washington | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | New York | 2 | ||||||||||||
| Eastern Conference | ||||||||||||||
| E2 | Cleveland | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | Cleveland | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | Orlando | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | New York | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Houston | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Los Angeles | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W4 | Phoenix | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Los Angeles | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Western Conference | ||||||||||||||
| W2 | Houston | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Houston | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | Sacramento | 0 | ||||||||||||
- Bold – Series winner
- Italics – Team with home-court advantage
Conference Semi=Finals
editCleveland Rockers vs. Orlando Miracle
editAugust 11
|
| Cleveland Rockers 55, Orlando Miracle 62 | ||
| Scoring by half: 29–28, 26–34 | ||
| Pts: Merlakia Jones 18 Rebs: Brown, Jones 6 each Asts: Rushia Brown 4 |
Pts: Taj McWilliams 16 Rebs: Taj McWilliams 10 Asts: Shannon Johnson 5 | |
| Orlando leads series, 1–0 | ||
TD Waterhouse Centre, Orlando, Florida
Attendance: 6,265 Referees: Sally Bell, Michael Henderson, Barb Smith |
August 13
|
| Orlando Miracle 54, Cleveland Rockers 63 | ||
| Scoring by half: 15–36, 39–27 | ||
| Pts: Adrienne Johnson 17 Rebs: Shannon Johnson 9 Asts: Shannon Johnson 7 |
Pts: Jones, Darling 15 each Rebs: Chasity Melvin 10 Asts: Suzie McConnell-Serio 6 | |
| Series tied, 1–1 | ||
Gund Arena, Cleveland, Ohio
Attendance: 9,755 Referees: Patty Broderick, Patrick Fraher, Gary Zielinski |
August 15
|
| Orlando Miracle 43, Cleveland Rockers 72 | ||
| Scoring by half: 21–32, 22–40 | ||
| Pts: Nykesha Sales 13 Rebs: Taj McWilliams 8 Asts: Dos Santos, McWilliams, S. Johnson, A. Johnson 2 each |
Pts: Ann Wauters 12 Rebs: Merlakia Jones 7 Asts: Suzie McConnell-Serio 7 | |
| Cleveland wins series, 2–1 | ||
New York Liberty vs. Washington Mystics
editAugust 12
|
| New York Liberty 72, Washington Mystics 63 | ||
| Scoring by half: 40–28, 32–35 | ||
| Pts: Johnson, Phillips 20 each Rebs: Vickie Johnson 8 Asts: Teresa Weatherspoon 9 |
Pts: Vicky Bullett 22 Rebs: Holdsclaw, Bullett 8 each Asts: Nikki McCray 11 | |
| New York leads series, 1–0 | ||
MCI Center, Washington, D.C.
Attendance: 16,331 Referees: Melissa Barlow, Lisa Mattingly, Bob Trammell |
August 14
|
| Washington Mystics 57, New York Liberty 78 | ||
| Scoring by half: 25–40, 32–38 | ||
| Pts: Holdsclaw, Aldridge 12 each Rebs: Markita Aldridge 4 Asts: Markita Aldridge 5 |
Pts: Becky Hammon 19 Rebs: Tari Phillips 10 Asts: Teresa Weatherspoon 10 | |
| New York wins series, 2–0 | ||
Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Attendance: 15,309 Referees: Dennis DeMayo, Courtney Kirkland, Mark Ayotte |
Los Angeles Sparks vs. Phoenix Mercury
editAugust 11
|
| Los Angeles Sparks 86, Phoenix Mercury 71 | ||
| Scoring by half: 43–24, 43–47 | ||
| Pts: Lisa Leslie 20 Rebs: Lisa Leslie 11 Asts: Tamecka Dixon 5 |
Pts: Brandy Reed 17 Rebs: Lisa Harrison 9 Asts: Brandy Reed 6 | |
| Los Angeles leads series, 1–0 | ||
America West Arena, Phoenix, Arizona
Attendance: 6,167 Referees: Jason Phillips, Bill Stokes, Bonita Spence |
August 13
|
| Phoenix Mercury 76, Los Angeles Sparks 101 | ||
| Scoring by half: 36–42, 40–59 | ||
| Pts: Harrison, Gillom 16 each Rebs: Michelle Griffiths 6 Asts: Lisa Harrison 5 |
Pts: Lisa Leslie 29 Rebs: Leslie, Mabika 8 each Asts: Tamecka Dixon 7 | |
| Los Angeles wins series, 2–0 | ||
Great Western Forum, Inglewood, California
Attendance: 9,811 Referees: Michael Price, Teresa Dahlem, Roy Gulbeyan |
Houston Comets vs. Sacramento Monarchs
editAugust 12
|
| Houston Comets 72, Sacramento Monarchs 64 | ||
| Scoring by half: 35–37, 37–27 | ||
| Pts: Cynthia Cooper 25 Rebs: Tiffani Johnson 8 Asts: Thompson, Cooper 3 each |
Pts: Ruthie Bolton-Holifield 16 Rebs: Yolanda Griffith 14 Asts: Kedra Holland-Corn 5 | |
| Houston leads series, 1–0 | ||
Arco Arena, Sacramento, California
Attendance: 8,053 Referees: Matthew Boland, June Courteau, Lamont Simpson |
August 14
|
| Sacramento Monarchs 70, Houston Comets 75 | ||
| Scoring by half: 37–38, 33–37 | ||
| Pts: Ruthie Bolton-Holifield 23 Rebs: Yolanda Griffith 10 Asts: Ticha Penicheiro 10 |
Pts: Sheryl Swoopes 27 Rebs: Tina Thompson 14 Asts: Sheryl Swoopes 6 | |
| Houston wins series, 2–0 | ||
Conference Finals
editNew York Liberty vs. Cleveland Rockers
editAugust 17
|
| New York Liberty 43, Cleveland Rockers 56 | ||
| Scoring by half: 21–29, 22–27 | ||
| Pts: Tari Phillips 11 Rebs: Tari Phillips 6 Asts: Teresa Weatherspoon 3 |
Pts: Rushia Brown 18 Rebs: Chasity Melvin 9 Asts: Suzie McConnell-Serio 5 | |
| Cleveland leads series, 1–0 | ||
August 20
|
| Cleveland Rockers 45, New York Liberty 51 | ||
| Scoring by half: 17–36, 28–15 | ||
| Pts: Merlakia Jones 18 Rebs: Merlakia Jones 12 Asts: Helen Darling 3 |
Pts: Becky Hammon 13 Rebs: Tari Phillips 6 Asts: Teresa Weatherspoon 9 | |
| Series tied, 1–1 | ||
Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Attendance: 15,865 Referees: Sally Bell, Courtney Kirkland, Gary Zielinski |
August 21
|
| Cleveland Rockers 67, New York Liberty 81 | ||
| Scoring by half: 27–46, 40–35 | ||
| Pts: Jones, McConnell-Serio 13 each Rebs: Chasity Melvin 9 Asts: Helen Darling 4 |
Pts: Tamika Whitmore 19 Rebs: Sue Wicks 6 Asts: Vickie Johnson 10 | |
| New York wins series, 2–1 | ||
Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Attendance: 15,173 Referees: Patty Broderick, Bill Stokes, Jason Phillips |
Los Angeles Sparks vs. Houston Comets
editAugust 17
|
| Los Angeles Sparks 56, Houston Comets 77 | ||
| Scoring by half: 23–40, 33–37 | ||
| Pts: Mwadi Mabika 21 Rebs: Lisa Leslie 8 Asts: Milton, Figgs 4 each |
Pts: Sheryl Swoopes 22 Rebs: Arcain, Swoopes 6 each Asts: Thompson, Arcain 3 each | |
| Houston leads series, 1–0 | ||
Compaq Center, Houston, Texas
Attendance: 14,597 Referees: Patty Broderick, Melissa Barlow, Jason Phillips |
August 20
|
| Houston Comets 74, Los Angeles Sparks 69 | ||
| Scoring by half: 40–35, 34–34 | ||
| Pts: Cynthia Cooper 29 Rebs: Tina Thompson 6 Asts: Sheryl Swoopes 6 |
Pts: Mwadi Mabika 19 Rebs: Lisa Leslie 14 Asts: Leslie, Figgs 5 each | |
| Houston wins series, 2–0 | ||
Great Western Forum, Inglewood, California
Attendance: 13,884 Referees: Dennis DeMayo, Teresa Dahlem, Patrick Fraher |
WNBA Championship
editAugust 24
|
| Houston Comets 59, New York Liberty 52 | ||
| Scoring by half: 29–22, 30–30 | ||
| Pts: Cynthia Cooper 20 Rebs: Swoopes, Thompson 8 each Asts: Cynthia Cooper 5 |
Pts: Tari Phillips 24 Rebs: Tari Phillips 15 Asts: Teresa Weatherspoon 5 | |
| Houston leads series, 1–0 | ||
Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Attendance: 19,563 Referees: Gary Zielinski, Sally Bell, Dennis DeMayo |
August 26
|
| New York Liberty 73, Houston Comets 79 (OT) | ||
| Scoring by half: 25–27, 39–37 Overtime: 9–15 | ||
| Pts: Tari Phillips 20 Rebs: Tari Phillips 7 Asts: Teresa Weatherspoon 8 |
Pts: Sheryl Swoopes 31 Rebs: Tina Thompson 8 Asts: Cynthia Cooper 7 | |
| Houston wins series, 2–0 | ||
Compaq Center, Houston, Texas
Attendance: 16,285 Referees: June Courteau, Michael Price, Courtney Kirkland |