WNBA Bruins – Regular Season Recap, Playoff Preview

LOS ANGELES – The 2020 WNBA season wrapped up last week with former Bruins excelling in various capacities for their respective teams. Point guard Jordin Canada ('18) and Associate Head Coach Noelle Quinn ('07) helped guide the Seattle Storm to an 18-4 record and the No. 2 seed in the upcoming WNBA playoffs, while Monique Billings ('18) and Kennedy Burke ('19) had impressive seasons for the Atlanta Dream and Indiana Fever, respectively.
 
Former Bruin sharpshooter Kari Korver ('17) finished her first regular season with the Los Angeles Sparks as Director of Operations, helping the team to a 15-7 record and the No. 3 seed in the playoff bracket. Additionally, UCLA Women's Basketball Video Coordinator Rachel Schrote serves as Assistant Video Coordinator for the Sparks.
 
Jordin Canada – 24.2 min, 7.9 pts, 5.5 ast, 2.3 reb, 1.5 stl
Jordin Canada continued to progress in her third season with the Seattle Storm, starting 11 games at the point. She averaged a career-high 5.5 assists per contest, the third-highest total in the league. She recorded a pair of 10-assist performances for the Storm and added six double-digit scoring games. She helped lead the Storm to an 18-4 record, tied for the best record in the league with the Las Vegas Aces. Canada and the Storm have secured the No. 2 seed in the playoffs and have already advanced to the semifinal rounds. Canada looks to win her second WNBA title in three years in the league, as she won her first championship as a rookie with Seattle in 2018.
 
Monique Billings – 27.1 min, 8.5 pts, 8.5 reb, 1.1 stl
Third-year forward Monique Billings had a breakout season for the Atlanta Dream, setting new career highs in starts (16), points per game (8.5), and rebounds per game (8.5). She averaged the seventh-most rebounds per contest and recorded five games with at least 12 boards. She notched eight double-digit scoring performances this season, including a career-high 30 points on opening night against the Dallas Wings (July 26). Billings strongly increased her scoring (5.5 to 8.5 ppg) and rebounding (6.9 to 8.5) outputs and should receive consideration for the WNBA's Most Improved Player award.
 
Kennedy Burke – 18.3 min, 7.2 pts, 1.8 reb, 1.1 ast
Kennedy Burke improved in virtually every statistical category in her second season with the Indiana Fever. She started half of Indiana's games and put up 7.2 points per game, up from 4.4 points per game in 2019. Burke scored in every single game for the Fever and added three double-digit scoring performances, including a season-high 23 points in Indiana's upset win over Seattle (Aug. 20). The second-year pro also was much more efficient from the field in 2020, shooting 57-for-127 over the course of the season for a .449 clip, up from a .385 shooting percentage a year ago.
 
Playoff Schedule
Round 1 – N/A
Round 2 (single elimination) – Los Angeles Sparks (Korver, Schrote) vs. TBA

• Thursday, Sept. 17 (7:00 p.m. ET/9:00 p.m. ET -- ESPN2)

Semifinals (best-of-five series) – Seattle Storm (Canada, Quinn) vs. TBA

• Game 1: Sunday, Sept. 20 (1:00 p.m. ET/3:00 p.m. ET – ESPN or ABC)