The 2025 WNBA playoffs started on Sept. 14 with eight former Gamecocks, tied for a league high with UConn (8) and Notre Dame (7). The eight players are on five different teams: No. 2 Las Vegas Aces, No. 3 Atlanta Dream, No. 6 Indiana Fever, No. 7 Seattle Storm and No. 8 Golden State Valkyries.
Forward A’ja Wilson is on the No. 2 Las Vegas Aces, guards Allisha Gray and Te-Hina Paopao are on the No. 3 Atlanta Dream, forward Aliyah Boston and guard Bree Hall are on the No. 6 Indiana Fever, guards Tiffany Mitchell and Zia Cooke are on the No. 7 Seattle Storm and forward Laeticia Amihere is on the No. 8 Golden State Valkyries.
In the first round of this year’s playoffs, Atlanta was upset by the Fever 2-1 to advance to the semifinals. Boston led the team in rebounds, averaging 9.7 per game over the three games to help lead the Fever over the Dream.
Despite the one loss, Gray was optimistic and said the team was moving in a "great" direction.
"We proved a lot of people wrong this year," Gray said. "A lot of people didn't expect us to play as well and be in the position that we are in."
The Aces also advanced after defeating the Storm for the third time in four years. Wilson led the team in scoring, with 29.3 points per game, and blocks, with two per game.
After the loss that eliminated the Storm from the playoffs on Sept. 18, Mitchell said she’ll use the offseason to regroup.
"Just take some time for me," Mitchell said. "The season's kind of been a whirlwind and one that I haven't had in a very long time or honestly ever."
Amihere and the Valkyries were eliminated in the first round 2-0 by the No. 1 seed Minnesota Lynx.
The teams left after the first round of the playoffs were the Aces, Fever, Lynx, and Mercury. The Aces and Fever have faced each other once on Sept. 21 and will continue for a best of five series, as each hope to make the 2025 WNBA Finals.
For the Fever, this would be the team’s first chance to make it back to the finals since 2015 and Boston’s first chance at a WNBA championship. A finals appearance for the Aces would be the third in four years and a chance for Wilson to win her third championship in her WNBA career.
The second round started on Sept. 21, and the Fever won 89-73 on the road against the Aces.
Both Gamecocks struggled to score efficiently with Boston shooting 33% from the field and Wilson shooting 27% from the field. The two former Gamecocks contributed in other ways too, as Boston led the Fever in assists with five, and Wilson led the Aces with 13 rebounds to secure a double-double of 16 points and 13 rebounds.
Awards and records
Several Gamecocks set records and took home awards in the 2025 WNBA regular season.
Gray set the single-season scoring record for the Dream with 745 points, while also hitting 93 three-pointers en route to the Dream's franchise record of 30 wins this season. Gray was one of two players in Dream history to hit 90 three-pointers within a season and became the 37th player to make 400 career three-pointers.
She also became the only guard in WNBA history to be named the WNBA Eastern Conference Player of the Month three times. Only 10 other players have been able to accomplish this feat, including her former teammate Wilson.
Wilson ended up winning two awards: the league's MVP award for the fourth time in her career and Defensive Player of the Year award for the third time.
With her fourth MVP, Wilson becomes the only player in WNBA history to win the award four times, breaking what was a four-way tie between her, Sheryl Swoopes, Lisa Leslie and Lauren Jackson.
Wilson was presented with her fourth MVP award during practice before the Aces' game against the Fever. She thanked the team for helping her throughout this season.
"It has my name on it, and it's going to be that," Wilson said, "but this one is all of us. There is no that without each and every last one of you guys."
Wilson also led the league in points per game for a second consecutive season and blocks per game. She ranked second in rebounds per game and fourth in steals per game. Her performance over the season helped the Aces win 16 straight games to end the season, the second-longest streak in WNBA history and a franchise record, to clinch the No. 2 seed.
Remaining Gamecocks
Dallas Wings guard Tyasha Harris, Los Angeles rookie forward Sania Feagin and Chicago Sky center Kamilla Cardoso were on teams that did not make the playoffs.
Harris played on the Wings for her sixth season in the WNBA and averaged 4.6 points, one rebound and 2.6 assists per game out of the five games she played this season.
Feagin was drafted in the 2025 WNBA draft with the 21st overall pick this past offseason. She saw limited time, averaging 4.8 minutes a game, 1.3 points per game, 0.7 rebounds and 0.4 blocks per game.
Due to the Valkyries joining the league as an expansion team, the WNBA regular season increased the number of games from 40 to 44 games. Cardoso entered her sophomore season and played in all 44 games this season.
She missed six games last season due to an injury in the preseason. She averaged 13.6 points per game, 8.5 rebounds per game and 1.2 blocks per game this season.
What's next?
The Aces will host the Fever at Michelob ULTRA Arena on Sept. 23 at 9:30 p.m. for game two of the series. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.