The No. 8-seeded New York Liberty achieved a historic feat by upsetting the top-seeded Minnesota Lynx in the first round of the 2026 WNBA playoffs. The Liberty defeated the Lynx by 16 points in each game, marking the first time in WNBA playoff history that an No. 8 seed has eliminated a No. 1 seed.

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Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones each contributed 21 points in the team's 87-71 win, securing their place in the semifinals for the third time in four years. The Liberty will now face the winner of the 4-5 matchup between the Atlanta Dream and the Washington Mystics, with Atlanta currently leading that series 1-0.

In the other playoff series, the Indiana Fever tied their series with the Las Vegas Aces at 1-1 after a 99-89 victory, featuring Kelsey Mitchell's 26 points and Aliyah Boston's 22 points.

The 2026 WNBA semifinals will start on Sunday, October 4. The semifinals adopt a best-of-five series format, with the higher seed enjoying home-court advantage in Games 1, 2, and, if necessary, Game 5. Teams are not reseeded after the first round.

The schedule for the semifinals is as follows:

- Oct. 4: Liberty at TBD, Game 1 (time and network TBD)

- TBD at TBD, Game 1 (time and network TBD)

- Oct. 7: Liberty at TBD, Game 2 (time and network TBD)

- TBD at TBD, Game 2 (time and network TBD)

- Oct. 9: TBD at Liberty, Game 3 (time and network TBD)

- TBD at TBD, Game 3 (time and network TBD)

- Oct. 11: TBD at Liberty, Game 4 (if necessary, time and network TBD)

- TBD at TBD, Game 4 (if necessary, time and network TBD)

- Oct. 14: Liberty at TBD, Game 5 (if necessary, time and network TBD)

- TBD at TBD, Game 5 (if necessary, time and network TBD)

The WNBA Finals are set to begin on Saturday, October 17, with games broadcast on NBC, Peacock, and USA Network. The full schedule for the finals includes:

- Game 1: Oct. 17, 3:30 p.m. ET, NBC and Peacock

- Game 2: Oct. 19, 8 p.m. ET, Peacock and USA Network

- Game 3: Oct. 22, 8 p.m. ET, Peacock and USA Network

- Game 4: Oct. 24, 3:30 p.m. ET, NBC and Peacock

- Game 5 (if necessary): Oct. 26, 8 p.m. ET, Peacock and USA Network

- Game 6 (if necessary): Oct. 29, 8 p.m. ET, Peacock and USA Network

- Game 7 (if necessary): Oct. 31, 8 p.m. ET, Peacock and USA Network.

Discussions about potential candidates for the next WNBA commissioner include Nneka Ogwumike, Jess Smith, and Bethany Donaphin.