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| Dates | October 4–14 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MVP |  Sylvia Fowles(Minnesota) | |||||||||
| Hall of Famers | Lynx: Seimone Augustus (2024) Lindsay Whalen (2022) Fever: Tamika Catchings (2020) | |||||||||
| Eastern finals | Indiana Fever defeatedNew York, 2–1 | |||||||||
| Western finals | Minnesota Lynx defeatedPhoenix, 2–0 | |||||||||
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The2015 WNBA Finals was the championship series for the2015 WNBA season of theWomen's National Basketball Association (WNBA). On August 26, vegasinsider.com projected that theMinnesota Lynx has the highest odds to win the series (11/10).[1]
The WNBA Finals were under a 2–2–1 rotation. The Lynx heldhome-court advantage as they had a better regular season record (22–12) than the Fever (20–14).
| Eastern Conference | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Conf. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| x -New York Liberty | 23 | 11 | .676 | – | 12–5 | 11–6 | 13–9 |
| x -Chicago Sky | 21 | 13 | .618 | 2 | 13–4 | 8–9 | 14–8 |
| x -Indiana Fever | 20 | 14 | .588 | 3 | 11–6 | 9–8 | 13–9 |
| x -Washington Mystics | 18 | 16 | .529 | 5 | 11–6 | 7–10 | 10–12 |
| e -Atlanta Dream | 15 | 19 | .441 | 8 | 9–8 | 6–11 | 10–12 |
| e -Connecticut Sun | 15 | 19 | .441 | 8 | 8–9 | 7–10 | 6–16 |
| Western Conference | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Conf. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| z -Minnesota Lynx | 22 | 12 | .647 | – | 13–4 | 9–8 | 16–6 |
| x -Phoenix Mercury | 20 | 14 | .588 | 2 | 13–4 | 7–10 | 15–7 |
| x -Tulsa Shock | 18 | 16 | .529 | 4 | 12–5 | 6–11 | 11–11 |
| x -Los Angeles Sparks | 14 | 20 | .412 | 8 | 9–8 | 5–12 | 10–12 |
| e -Seattle Storm | 10 | 24 | .294 | 12 | 8–9 | 2–15 | 8–14 |
| e -San Antonio Stars | 8 | 26 | .235 | 14 | 7–10 | 1–16 | 6–16 |
| Minnesota Lynx | Indiana Fever | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 22–12 (.647) 1st West, 2nd overall | Seeding | 20–14 (.588) 3rd East, 4th overall | |
| Defeated the (4)Los Angeles Sparks,2–1 | Conference Semifinals | Defeated the (2)Chicago Sky,2–1 | |
| Defeated the (2)Phoenix Mercury,2–0 | Conference Finals | Defeated the (1)New York Liberty,2–1 | |
The Indiana Fever finished 20–14, good for third place in the Eastern Conference. The Fever lost their first playoff game against theChicago Sky, but rallied to win two straight elimination games, setting up a conference final against theNew York Liberty. Once again, Indiana lost the first game of the series, but rallied to win two straight to reach the finals for the third time in franchise history, which gaveStephanie White the first rookie head coach to lead her team to theWNBA Finals.
The Minnesota Lynx finished with the best record in the Western Conference for the fourth time in five year, finishing with a 22–12 record. With the mid-season addition ofSylvia Fowles from theChicago Sky, the Lynx eliminated theLos Angeles Sparks in three games. The Lynx then swept thePhoenix Mercury in the Western Conference Finals after a controversial foul called on Mercury guardNoelle Quinn onMaya Moore with 1.5 seconds left in the fourth quarter in Game 2, which gave them a chance to win their third WNBA title in five years.
TheMinnesota Lynx won the season series 2–0:
October 4 3:00pm ET |
| Indiana Fever75,Minnesota Lynx 69 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 10–10,25–19,19–18, 21–22 | ||
| Pts:January 19 Rebs:Larkins 8 Asts:January 6 | Pts:Moore 27 Rebs:Moore 12 Asts:Augustus,Whalen 4 | |
| Indiana leads series, 1-0 | ||
October 6 8:00pm ET |
| Indiana Fever 71,Minnesota Lynx77 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:24–20, 17–19, 18–24, 12–14 | ||
| Pts:January 17 Rebs:Catchings,Larkins 9 Asts:Catchings,January 5 | Pts:Fowles 21 Rebs:Fowles 9 Asts:Cruz,Moore 5 | |
| Series tied, 1-1 | ||
Target Center,Minneapolis, MN Attendance: 12,134 Referees: Michael Price, Maj Forsberg, Lamont Simpson |
October 9 8:00pm ET |
| Minnesota Lynx80,Indiana Fever 77 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:20–19, 18–23,21–15,21–20 | ||
| Pts:Moore 24 Rebs:Fowles 11 Asts:Cruz 5 | Pts:Johnson 17 Rebs:Catchings 10 Asts:January 8 | |
| Minnesota leads series, 2-1 | ||
Bankers Life Fieldhouse,Indianapolis, IN Attendance: 16,332 Referees: Denise Brooks, Roy Gulbeyan, Tom Mauer |
October 11 8:30pm ET |
| Minnesota Lynx 69,Indiana Fever75 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:20–15, 12–21, 14–22,23–17 | ||
| Pts:Moore 20 Rebs:Moore 8 Asts:six tied 2 | Pts:Johnson 15 Rebs:Larkins 6 Asts:January 5 | |
| Series tied, 2-2 | ||
Bankers Life Fieldhouse,Indianapolis, IN Attendance: 10,582 Referees: Sue Blauch, Eric Brewton, Maj Forsberg |
October 14 8:00pm ET |
| Indiana Fever 52,Minnesota Lynx69 | ||
| Scoring by quarter:17–15, 4–12, 8–21,23–21 | ||
| Pts:Catchings 18 Rebs:Catchings 11 Asts:January,Zellous 3 | Pts:Fowles 20 Rebs:Brunson 14 Asts:Moore 5 | |
| Minnesota wins WNBA Finals, 3-2 | ||
| 2015Minnesota Lynx roster | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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