U’ndeniable

The GIST: Forget football, this past Sunday was for women’s hoops. All four best-of-three series tipped off yesterday, and the postseason premiere certainly did not disappoint.

No. 1 NY Liberty rout No. 8 Atlanta Dream: NY’s quest to hoist their first-ever championship got off to the perfect start: The seafoam superteam scored six straight buckets to start the game, never trailing in their 83–69 Game 1 win. All-Rookie Leonie Fiebich was on fire in her starting lineup debut, scoring a game-high 21 points. When you know you know.

• Can the Dream wake up from the nightmare, or will the Libs make quick work of their first-round opponent in tomorrow’s 7:30 p.m. ET Game 2?

No. 3 Connecticut Sun’s defense stymies AP Rookie of the Year Caitlin Clark and No. 6 Indiana Fever: The Sun held Clark to just 11 points in their dominant 93–69 win, but it wasn’t just the Connecticut D shining bright — Marina Mabrey dropped a WNBA-record 27 points off the bench to complement vintage performances from Alyssa “triple-double” Thomas and DeWanna Bonner.

Napheesa Collier lifts No. 2 Minnesota Lynx past No. 7 Phoenix Mercury: Led by 30 points and 10 assists from Natasha Cloud, the Mercury made it interesting down the stretch, nearly overcoming a 23-point deficit. But AP Defensive Player of the Year Collier put the Lynx on her back, letting her offense do the talking as she tallied a career-high 38 points in the 102–95 Game 1 win.

M’VP A’ja Wilson lifts No. 4 Las Vegas Aces over No. 5 Seattle Storm: Buoyed by 21 points and five blocks from Wilson, the Aces really found their stride in the fourth quarter, outscoring Seattle by 12 points to weather the Storm 78–67. The end of games has been Seattle’s kryptonite all season long, and Game 1 was no different: The Storm didn’t hit a field goal in the entire fourth quarter. Oof.

• Game 2 tips off tomorrow at 9:30 p.m. ET, where the Aces can book a semifinal ticket while the Storm will hoop for a chance to extend the series to a deciding Game 3.

The GIST: Week 3 was full of fourth-quarter thrills and empowering front office firsts, as the surprises continue to stack up this NFL season. Expect the unexpected.

Six teams notch their first dub of the season: The Baltimore Ravens, LA Rams, NY Giants, Denver Broncos, Indianapolis Colts, and Carolina Panthers are winless no more, each ticking one in the win column yesterday.

• But no victory was more exciting than the Rams’ — LA rallied for a fourth quarter comeback behind kicker Joshua Karty’s 37-yard field goal, sealing a 27–24 win over the injury-plagued San Francisco 49ers. And yes, it was personal.

Four squads improve to 3-0: Alongside the undefeated reigning champ Kansas City Chiefs, who continue to impress as expected, three more teams remain unbeaten after yesterday’s contests: the Minnesota Vikings, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Seattle Seahawks.

• Pittsburgh quarterback (QB) Justin Fields’ performance was particularly noteworthy. He rushed for one touchdown (TD) and tossed another, his third impressive performance in the Steelers starting role. Silencing the haters.

Panthers’ QB switch up pays off: Journeyman QB Andy Dalton shined in yesterday’s 36–22 win over the Las Vegas Raiders, throwing three TDs after replacing benched 2023 No. 1 overall draft pick Bryce Young under center. Perhaps those trade rumors have some merit after all.

Philadelphia Eagles defense stifles surging New Orleans Saints: Philly handed The Big Easy their first L of the season, a 15–12 Birds win, holding New Orleans to just 12 points after the Saints scored a combined 91 (!!!) points in their first two games.

Up next — a Monday Night Football doubleheader: The winless Jacksonville Jaguars take on the 2-0 Buffalo Bills tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET, while QB Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals fight for their first dub of the season at 8:15 p.m. ET, squaring off against the 1-1 Washington Commanders.