Well, what do you think? Is two out of four good, bad or indifferent when it comes to predicting playoff series?
For the conference semifinals, I predicted the Lynx over the Storm and the Sparks to beat the Mercury in the West. In the East I picked two upsets, Indiana over Chicago and Washington over Atlanta.
I was half right.
We'll get into this more as the week goes on, but after watching the Phoenix-L.A. game last night my first impression is that this Mercury team plays much better defense with Russ Pennell as their head coach, and I think they will be a very formidable opponent for the Lynx. The Mercury is 11-5, including playoffs, since Pennell took over for the fired Corey Gaines, and Phoenix is playing with a lot of confidence.
The Lynx went 5-0 vs. Phoenix this season, but they haven't played since Pennell took over, so it will be a different Mercury team this time around. I haven't decided how I'm going to predict this series yet.
But in the east…
Indiana is in the process of duplicating its playoff run last year. The situation is so similar. A so-so regular season. Injuries to overcome. But the Fever's rough-and-tumble, defensive style is well-suited to the playoffs. Watch out for the Fever.
Atlanta showed nice balance winning last night in a game where Angel McCcoughtry struggled with her shot. But I'll say it now. I believe the Fever, led by Tameka Catchings will shut down McCoughtry and the Dream and advance to the finals to defend its title. I wouldn't be surprised if it gets done in two games.
