2025 WNBA playoffs: Storm clinch final spot with dramatic comeback win over Valkyries
The land for the WNBA 2025 playoffs is fixed after the Seattle storm won the last place on Tuesday with a dramatic victory back against the Golden State Valkyries, 74-73. The storm will be the seeded n ° 8 and will face the head n ° 1 of the minnesota lynx in the first round.
The storm entered Tuesday needing a Los Angeles victory or defeat to get a place in the playoffs. The Sparks ended up beating the Phoenix Mercury on the road, which meant that the storm had to find a way to beat the Valkyries, and that’s exactly what they did thanks to Erica Wheeler.
A night when the storm was struggling offensively, Wheeler came out of the bench to offer an energy boost and a major score. She struck two huge 3 points at the start of the fourth quarter to grasp the return of the storm of what had been a two -digit deficit at the end of the third. Then, with a little less than 20 seconds to play, she drained the winning rider of the game.
Wheeler equalized his top of the season with five 3 points and finished with a summit of 17 points, five rebounds and two assists. She had 5 out of 7 of the arc, while the rest of the storm was 2 by 10.
“We knew what was at stake. We wanted to participate in the playoffs,” said Wheeler. “The coach said” emptying the tank “, and that’s what we did. We emptied the tank and played until the last minute. This is not my last blow, it is a team effort and we just did what we had to do to get this victory.”
Four biggest questions for the last three days of the WNBA season: can Lynx win? Who secures the last place in the playoffs?
Jack Maloney
Match 1 of the first round series of the storm with the Lynx is scheduled for Sunday, with a period of derogation to be determined.
STORM much more talented than the typical seed n ° 8
It will be the second consecutive appearance in the playoffs for The Storm, which was swept away in the first round last season by the Las Vegas Aces.
Before the season, the storm would have hoped to be close to the top of the ranking, and perhaps even in the mixture with the lynx as a title candidate. Indeed, they experienced a departure of 9-5, and were 16-11 while the calendar changed in August, which only half a match back in third place. They then lost six consecutive games by 27 combined points and spent the rest of the season to fight just to make the playoffs.
Although the storm is outsiders against the lynx, who are the favorites to win everything (+105 at Fanduel), they are much more talented than a seeded n ° 8 and played Napheesa Collier and the hard company this season. The teams divided their four meetings, and three of these games were decided by five points or less.
No matter what’s going on in the first round, it was important that the storm is making the playoffs this season, whatever their seed. That they eliminated sparks in the process was even better.
The storm has the choice of first round of the Sparks in 2026 and is now ensuring a selection of lottery in what should be a busy draft class. In addition, the storm exchanged its own choice of first round in 2026 to the mystics of Washington as part of the trade of Brittney Sykes and no longer has to abandon a choice of lottery.
