2008 WNBA Finals

Sports tournament August 2023 2008 WNBA Finals logo.png WNBA 2008 San Antonio Silver Stars Dan Hughes 0 Detroit Shock Bill Laimbeer 3 October 1 - 5 Katie Smith (Detroit Shock) Shock:Katie Smith (2018)Silver Stars:Becky Hammon (2023) Detroit defeated New York, 2–1 San Antonio defeated Los Angeles, 2–1 The 2008 WNBA Finals was the championship series of the 2008 WNBA season, and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. The Detroit Shock, top-seeded champions of the Eastern Conference, defeated the San Antonio Silver Stars, top-seeded champions of the Western Conference, three games to none in a best-of-five series. This was Detroit's third title in six years. 2008 marked the first time since switching to a five-game format that the Finals series was swept. The Shock made their fourth appearance in the Finals in six years. The Silver Stars appeared in the Finals for the first time in franchise history. Going into the series, the Shock had won two championships, tied with the Los Angeles Sparks for second most in WNBA history. The Silver Stars' 24–10 record gave them home court advantage over Detroit (22–12). It did not matter, however, as the Shock swept the series, winning the first two games on the Silver Stars' home floor. Road to the finals 2008 WNBA playoffs San Antonio Silver StarsDetroit Shock24–10 (.706)1st West, 1st overall Regular season22–12 (.647)1st East, 2nd overallDefeated the (4) Sacramento Monarchs, 2–1 Conference SemifinalsDefeated the (4) Indiana Fever, 2–1Defeated the (3) Los Angeles Sparks, 2–1 Conference FinalsDefeated the (3) New York Liberty, 2–1 Regular season series The San Antonio Silver Stars won both games in the regular season series: #eee July 1 Recap Detroit Shock 72 San Antonio Silver Stars |score2=79 AT&T Center, San Antonio #eee July 17 Recap San Antonio Silver Stars |score1=76 Detroit Shock 64 Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills Game summaries All times listed below are Eastern Daylight Time. Game 1 #eee October 1 7:00pm Recap Detroit Shock 77 69 San Antonio Silver Stars 15–18 27–14 17–17 18–20 Smith 25 Young 21 Smith 9 Young 9 Hornbuckle 5 Hammon 5 Stls: Hornbuckle 3 Blocks: Wauters 3 AT&T Center, San Antonio 9,380 #22 Corteau #38 Simpson #42 Gulbeyan ESPN2 Detroit leads series, 1–0 The Silver Stars' defense was able to hold Deanna Nolan to just 10 points in forty minutes of play. But they had no answer for Katie Smith (25 points, 4–8 3P-FG) or Taj McWilliams-Franklin (24 points, 65% FG). The Silver Stars, who lost to an Eastern Conference team for the first time all season after 14 wins, were led by Sophia Young's 21 points and 16 from Ann Wauters. Detroit didn't get its first lead until 2:19 into the second quarter when Smith made two free throws to go up 21–20 before the Shock outscored San Antonio 21-12 the rest of the half for the double-digit margin. The Silver Stars went cold, shooting 4-of-16 in the second quarter. San Antonio played without key reserves Helen Darling and Edwige Lawson-Wade. Darling strained her right calf and Lawson-Wade sprained her right ankle during Saturday's Game 2 victory over Los Angeles in the Western Conference semifinals. Detroit, already without All-Star forward Cheryl Ford, missed Plenette Pierson for the third time in the last five games because of a labrum tear in her right shoulder. Game 2 #eee October 3 7:00 pm Recap Detroit Shock 69 61 San Antonio Silver Stars 25–12 10–16 13–17 21–16 Smith 22 Hammon 24 Nolan 7 Johnson, Wauters 6 Smith 6 Hammon 7 Stls: Nolan 4 3P-FG: Hammon 3-6 AT&T Center, San Antonio 16,012 #9 Brooks-Clauser #18 Walker #55 Brewton ESPN2 Detroit leads series, 2–0 Katie Smith scored 22 points and the Shock built a big lead in the first quarter, then hung on to beat the San Antonio Silver Stars 69–61 and go up 2–0. Deanna Nolan and Kara Braxton added 12 points each for the Shock, who led 19–2 less than 6 minutes into the game. Detroit made nine of its first 10 shots and San Antonio missed its first seven attempts, allowing the Shock to build a 10–0 lead. The Silver Stars didn't score from the floor until 5:57 into the game, when Hammon converted on a drive to the basket that made it 19–4. The Silver Stars tied the game with 3:26 left in the third quarter on a pair of free throws by Hammon, and she put San Antonio ahead 45–44 with 1:46 left in the quarter on another pair of free throws. Plenette Pierson, wearing a protective wrap on her shoulder after missing Game 1 with an injury, answered with a reverse layup for her only points of the night. Smith followed with two free throws that gave Detroit a 48–45 lead heading into the fourth quarter. The Shock expanded the lead to 66–55 with 2:15 to play after Smith hit a 10-foot jumper, Taj McWilliams-Franklin scored on a 17-footer and Braxton made a layup. Game 3 #eee October 5 7:00 pm Recap San Antonio Silver Stars 60 76 Detroit Shock 16–16 18–14 11–19 15–27 Wauters 19 Smith 18 Wauters 9 Braxton, Hornbuckle 9 Hammon, Wauters 3 Hornbuckle, Nolan 5 FG: Young 7/12 OR: Braxton 6 EMU Convocation Center, Ypsilanti 8,952 #7 Stevens #22 Corteau #39 Price ESPN2 Detroit wins WNBA Finals, 3–0 Detroit became the second team in league history to win a third championship. Only the Houston Comets, who won the first four (1997–2000), have more. Los Angeles (2001, 2002) is the only other team with more than one. It was a redeeming win for the Shock, who let the 2007 title slip away, losing Game 5 at The Palace of Auburn Hills to the Phoenix Mercury. Detroit swept the league's best regular-season team, winning the clincher at the Eastern Michigan University Convocation Center, a venue forced upon them because of a scheduling conflict. The Shock won their 2003 championship at The Palace and their '06 title at Detroit's Joe Louis Arena, also a substitute venue because of a logistical conflict. The game was tight for three quarters with San Antonio leading by six on several occasions. But the veteran Shock were too much to take in the fourth with the title on the line. The Shock had been one of the league's best teams for much of the year, but sputtered a bit after losing top post player Cheryl Ford to a season-ending knee injury in July. But a trade for the veteran McWilliams-Franklin over the Olympic break was just what Detroit needed. It won its last five games of the regular season and six of seven after the monthlong Olympic break and carried the momentum into the playoffs. The Shock are now considered the second dynasty of the WNBA. Awards 2008 WNBA champion: Detroit Shock Finals MVP: Katie Smith Rosters 2008 Detroit Shock Finals WNBA #00008B #D3D3D3 #DC143C #FFFFFF 45 Kara Braxton C 6 6 210 Georgia USA 35 Cheryl Ford PF 6 3 198 Louisiana Tech USA yes 22 Alexis Hornbuckle SG 5 11 155 Tennessee USA 44 Taj McWilliams-Franklin PF 6 2 184 St. Edward's University USA 14 Deanna Nolan SG 5 11 144 Georgia USA 23 Plenette Pierson SF 6 2 181 Texas Tech USA 5 Elaine Powell PG 5 8 150 Louisiana State USA 55 Sheri Sam G/F 6 0 160 Vanderbilt USA 24 Olayinka Sanni C 6 2 205 West Virginia USA 11 Kelly Schumacher C 6 5 183 Connecticut USA 3 Ashley Shields SG 5 10 155 Southwest Tennessee Community College USA 30 Katie Smith G/F 5 11 174 Ohio State USA USA Bill Laimbeer Notre Dame USA Rick Mahorn Hampton USA Cheryl Reeve 1 La Salle USA Laura Ramus 1 Wayne State University USA Laura Ramus 1 Wayne State University 2008 San Antonio Silver Stars Finals WNBA #000000 #D3D3D3 #D3D3D3 #000000 24 Morenike Atunrase G/F 5 10 143 Texas A&M USA 7 Erin Buescher SF 6 3 181 Master's College USA 5 Shanna Crossley SG 5 10 155 Tennessee USA yes 30 Helen Darling PG 5 6 164 Penn State USA 25 Becky Hammon PG 5 6 136 Colorado State USA 50 Sandora Irvin PF 6 3 185 TCU USA 55 Vickie Johnson G/F 5 9 150 Louisiana Tech USA 9 Edwige Lawson-Wade Edwige Lawson SG 5 6 130 France FRA 00 Ruth Riley C 6 5 198 Notre Dame USA 32 Adrianne Ross SG 5 8 142 TCU USA 12 Ann Wauters C 6 4 193 Belgium BEL 51 Brittany Wilkins C 6 3 185 Iowa State USA 33 Sophia Young PF 6 1 165 Baylor USA USA Dan Hughes basketball coach Muskingum AUS Sandy Brondello Australia USA Olaf Lange 1 USA Vanessa Nygaard USA Mike Ekanem 1 Texas Lutheran University USA Tonya Holley 1 St. Andrew's Presbyterian References Finals Category:Detroit Shock Category:San Antonio Stars Category:2008 in sports in Texas Category:2008 in sports in Michigan Category:WNBA Finals Category:21st century in San Antonio Category:Basketball competitions in San Antonio Category:Basketball competitions in Michigan Category:Sports in Ypsilanti, Michigan