Welcome to Bet For the Win’s W Bets, where we break down, explain and bet on the WNBA. Today, we’re running down the first Friday slate of the 2022 season.
Season picks (record): 4-6
It’s Friday night and the W is sending us into the weekend with a quartet of games. From Connecticut playing on the second night of a back-to-back to Dallas and Seattle trying to live up to the hype of last season’s consecutive game-winners, each matchup should present a competitive and entertaining 40 minutes of basketball up and down the board.
Here’s a look at the matchups, odds, and storylines.
All odds via Tipico Sportsbook.
New York Liberty vs. Washington Mystics (-11.5)
(Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports)
On Tuesday, the Liberty won their first game in nearly a month. You read that correctly. Sabrina Ionescu and crew put together a strong fourth quarter in front of the home crowd to (finally) pull away from the Indiana Fever and earn their first win since Game 1 of the season.
New York’s vibes and recent success will be put on the line against the quite possibly the league’s best team in the Washington Mystics. But as far as the matchup goes, Washington has the better coach, better players and the home-court advantage. Feels like you could pencil in a win for the Mystics but by how much? Up to you. They’ve won all but one of their games by more than 11 points this year.
The Pick: Mystics -11.5
Chicago Sky (-4.5) vs. Atlanta Dream
(Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports)
Atlanta is a surprising 6-3 through the quarter mark of its WNBA season, which is quite impressive considering its team over the previous seasons. Rhyne Howard is fantastic and is the future face of the league, while the rest of the group is tough as heck and highly functional.
That being said, the Dream have been disappointing each time they have faced the competition that is better than them. They’ll get the defending champions on Friday night and I expect that trend to continue. Candace Parker, Courtney Vandersloot, Kahleah Copper, etc. It’s just too much for this Atlanta team to handle.
The Pick: Sky ML (-210)
Dallas Wings vs. Seattle Storm (-6.5)
(Stephen Brashear-USA TODAY Sports)
Dallas vs. Seattle is my favorite WNBA matchup because it always delivers some absolutely stellar finishes. In three meetings a season ago, the two played in an OT thriller that the Storm won by three points. Two weeks later, it was another three-point overtime win for Seattle via a Jewell Loyd buzzer-beater, and then two days after that, Arike Ogunbowale called game from near halfcourt to give Dallas the one-point victory.
Can we realistically expect another doozy on Friday night? Sure, we can. The matchup remains up in the air but in terms of winner and loser but the high score feels inevitable.
The Pick: Over 160.5 points (-108)
Connecticut Sun (-4.5) vs. Phoenix Mercury
(Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports)
There’s not a whole lot to analyze here.
The Sun are really good and the Mercury have been bad all year (for some obvious, uncontrollable reasons). Despite being on the second night of a back-to-back, it still feels like Connecticut is going to dominate this game on the boards with its physicality and length while also forcing Phoenix into turnovers and horrible offensive possessions.
There’s always the chance that the Mercury’s talented, all-time great WNBA players could flip the switch and turn this thing around. But it’s hard to imagine that happening against Connecticut.
The Pick: Connecticut -4.5
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