Talking the business of sports

The 2022 WNBA playoffs returned Wednesday with a pair of Game 2s -- one thrilling, the other not so much. In the second game of the doubleheader, the Las Vegas Aces squeaked past the Seattle Storm, 78-73, to even their semi-final series at 1-1. Prior to that game, the Chicago Sky tied their series with Connecticut Sun at 1-1 as well, cruising to an 85-77 victory  that was not as competitive as the final score indicates. 

Another new playoff format has debuted this year, as the league has scrapped the first- and second-round byes in favor of a standard three-round bracket format. The first round was best-of-three, and the semifinals and Finals will be best-of-five. The semifinals and Finals will use a standard 2-2-1 format, with the higher seed hosting Games 1, 2 and 5, if necessary, and the lower seed hosting Games 3 and 4, if necessary. 

🚨 Semifinals Bound 🚨 The Semis for the 2022 #WNBAPlayoffs presented by @Google is set 👏 The @LVAces, @seattlestorm, @chicagosky, and @ConnecticutSun are the last 4 teams standing ‼ Semifinals play begins Sunday, Aug. 28th at 4pm/ET pic.twitter.com/gu2wVwDPRl

Here's a look at the entire schedule:

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