WNBA semifinals: Aces, Liberty remain on a collision course - ESPN

It was all chalk through the first round, but the semifinals of the 2023 WNBA playoffs are set: The No. 2 seed New York Liberty will square off against the No. 3 seed Connecticut Sun, while the top-seeded Las Vegas Aces will face the No. 4 seed Dallas Wings.

The best-of-five series tip off Sunday at 1 p.m. ET on ESPN.

The defending champion Aces are six wins away from becoming the first WNBA team to repeat since the 2001-02 Los Angeles Sparks, while the Liberty and Sun are two of three active franchises that have never won a WNBA title. The Wings franchise won three titles when it was located in Detroit as the Shock, but it has not gotten close to reaching those heights in Tulsa or Dallas.

The Aces and Sun have each advanced to the semifinals for five consecutive seasons, while the Liberty are playing in the semifinals for the first time since 2015 and the Wings were last here in 2009, as the Shock.

The Wings were the only team this season to beat the Aces, Liberty and Sun (the top three teams in the standings), but can they sustain consistent high-level play across a series, against such an experienced opponent? And while the Sun haven't beaten the Liberty this summer, last year they managed to take down Chicago in five games in the semifinals — after going winless against the Sky in the regular season.

We break down the matchups and what to look for as the next round of the playoffs gets underway.

Game 1: Dallas at Las Vegas, 5 p.m. ET Sunday (ESPN2)
Regular season: Las Vegas won 3-1

The Aces were 12 games better than the Wings in the regular-season standings, but it doesn't seem like the teams are quite that far apart entering this series. The Wings have the personnel — especially their depth inside — to potentially