# 1998 WNBA playoffs

The 1998 WNBA Playoffs was the postseason for the Women's National Basketball Association's 1998 season which ended with the Houston Comets beating the Phoenix Mercury, 2-1. Cynthia Cooper was named the MVP of the Finals. The Comets repeated as champions.

## Regular season standings

Eastern Conference
| Eastern Conference | W | L | PCT | Conf. | GB |
| Cleveland Rockers $^x$ | 20 | 10 | .667 | 12–4 | – |
| Charlotte Sting $^x$ | 18 | 12 | .600 | 11–5 | 2.0 |
| New York Liberty $^o$ | 18 | 12 | .600 | 8–8 | 2.0 |
| Detroit Shock $^o$ | 17 | 13 | .567 | 8–8 | 3.0 |
| Washington Mystics $^o$ | 3 | 27 | .100 | 1–15 | 17.0 |
Western Conference
| Western Conference | W | L | PCT | Conf. | GB |
| Houston Comets $^x$ | 27 | 3 | .900 | 15–1 | – |
| Phoenix Mercury $^x$ | 19 | 11 | .633 | 10–6 | 8.0 |
| Los Angeles Sparks $^o$ | 12 | 18 | .400 | 6–10 | 15.0 |
| Sacramento Monarchs $^o$ | 8 | 22 | .267 | 5–11 | 19.0 |
| Utah Starzz $^o$ | 8 | 22 | .267 | 4–12 | 19.0 |
Note: Teams with an "X" clinched playoff spots.

## Playoffs
### Format

* The four teams with the best record in the league were seeded one to four.
* Each round of the playoffs was a best-of-three series.

### Bracket

| Semi-Finals Best-of-3 | Semi-Finals Best-of-3 | Semi-Finals Best-of-3 | WNBA Championship Best-of-3 | WNBA Championship Best-of-3 | WNBA Championship Best-of-3 |
| 1 | Houston | 2 | | | |
| 4 | Charlotte | 0 | | | |
| 4 | Charlotte | 0 | 1 | Houston | 2 |
| | | | 3 | Phoenix | 1 |
| 2 | Cleveland | 1 | 3 | Phoenix | 1 |
| 3 | Phoenix | 2 | | | |
* Bold – Series winner

### Semifinals
#### Houston Comets vs. Charlotte Sting

* August 22
* Recap
Houston Comets 85, Charlotte Sting 71 :
| Scoring by half: 39–37, 46–34 |||
| Pts: Cynthia Cooper 27 Rebs: Tina Thompson 10 Asts: Kim Perrot 6 | Pts: Rhonda Mapp 16 Rebs: Andrea Stinson 7 Asts: Andrea Stinson 7 |
| Houston leads series, 1–0 |||
* Charlotte Coliseum, Charlotte, North Carolina Attendance: 6,087 Referees: Bob Trammell, Teresa Dahlem, Sally Bell
* August 24
* Recap
Charlotte Sting 61, Houston Comets 77 :
| Scoring by half: 34–45, 27–32 |||
| Pts: Tracy Reid 18 Rebs: Vicky Bullett 11 Asts: Andrea Stinson 6 | Pts: Cynthia Cooper 23 Rebs: Tina Thompson 14 Asts: Cooper, Perrot 5 each |
| Houston wins series, 2–0 |||
* Compaq Center, Houston, Texas Attendance: 11,901 Referees: Bill Stokes, Gary Zielinski, Jason Phillips

#### Cleveland Rockers vs. Phoenix Mercury

* August 22
* Recap
Cleveland Rockers 68, Phoenix Mercury 78 :
| Scoring by half: 31–37, 37–41 |||
| Pts: Isabelle Fijalkowski 20 Rebs: Isabelle Fijalkowski 9 Asts: Nemcova, Edwards 4 each | Pts: Jennifer Gillom 21 Rebs: Gillom, Reed 5 each Asts: Umeki Webb 6 |
| Phoenix leads series, 1–0 |||
* America West Arena, Phoenix, Arizona Attendance: 11,631 Referees: Stan Gaxiola, June Courteau, Michael Price
* August 24
* Recap
Phoenix Mercury 66, Cleveland Rockers 67 :
| Scoring by half: 24–32, 42–35 |||
| Pts: Jennifer Gillom 27 Rebs: Jennifer Gillom 10 Asts: Michele Timms 6 | Pts: Michelle Edwards 18 Rebs: Janice Braxton 10 Asts: Suzie McConnell-Serio 9 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* Gund Arena, Cleveland, Ohio Attendance: 10,465 Referees: Scott Yarbrough, Patty Broderick, Bill Kennedy
* August 25
* Recap
Phoenix Mercury 71, Cleveland Rockers 60 :
| Scoring by half: 32–35, 39–25 |||
| Pts: Bridget Pettis 27 Rebs: Bridget Pettis 11 Asts: Michele Timms 8 | Pts: Isabelle Fijalkowski 17 Rebs: Isabelle Fijalkowski 11 Asts: Eva Nemcova 5 |
| Phoenix wins series, 2–1 |||
* Gund Arena, Cleveland, Ohio Attendance: 8,420 Referees: Sally Bell, Gary Zielinski, Bill Stokes

## WNBA Championship

* August 27
* Recap
Houston Comets 51, Phoenix Mercury 54 :
| Scoring by half: 29–33, 22–21 |||
| Pts: Cynthia Cooper 29 Rebs: Sheryl Swoopes 11 Asts: Swoopes, Perrot 6 each | Pts: Jennifer Gillom 15 Rebs: Michelle Griffiths 12 Asts: Michele Timms 5 |
| Phoenix leads series, 1–0 |||
* America West Arena, Phoenix, Arizona Attendance: 13,634 Referees: Bill Stokes, June Courteau, Bill Kennedy
* August 29
* Recap
Phoenix Mercury 69, Houston Comets 74 (OT) :
| Scoring by half: 37–32, 29–34 Overtime: 3–8 |||
| Pts: Michele Timms 21 Rebs: Jennifer Gillom 9 Asts: Michelle Griffiths 3 | Pts: Cynthia Cooper 27 Rebs: Sheryl Swoopes 13 Asts: Cynthia Cooper 6 |
| Series tied, 1–1 |||
* Compaq Center, Houston, Texas Attendance: 16,285 Referees: Sally Bell, Gary Zielinski, Michael Price
* September 1
* Recap
Phoenix Mercury 71, Houston Comets 80 :
| Scoring by half: 26–32, 45–48 |||
| Pts: Michelle Griffiths 24 Rebs: Jennifer Gillom 6 Asts: Michele Timms 7 | Pts: Cynthia Cooper 23 Rebs: Tina Thompson 6 Asts: Swoopes, Cooper 6 each |
| Houston wins series, 2–1 |||
* Compaq Center, Houston, Texas Attendance: 16,285 Referees: June Courteau, Gary Zielinski, Bill Kennedy