WNBA

A short preseason of exhibition games comes before the opener, and those games do not count in the standings. The regular season usually runs from May into September.

The playoffs are series for the top teams in each conference, and the WNBA Finals usually run in October. The exact dates change each year.

A play is any event in the feed, such as a shot, a rebound, a turnover or a foul. Play-by-play lists them in order, with the game situation.

Scoring matches the NBA: a made two-pointer is worth two, a made three-pointer is worth three, and a made free throw is worth one. Quarters are 10 minutes, not 12. For example, a three-pointer, a two-pointer and a free throw make 6 points.

An Antic Rating is a player's score for one game on a 0 to 10 scale. It reflects what the player did and how much their plays helped the team win, so it describes that game, not the season.

Above 10 is reserved for outstanding games. Antic also gives each game a game rating, from how much the win chance swung. Ratings describe what happened: they are not picks or predictions.

WNBA props are player stat lines: points, rebounds, assists, made three-pointers and points plus rebounds. Most are over or under a number.

Antic never places bets. If betting stops being fun, set limits or call 1-800-GAMBLER.

Polls ask who wins before tip-off, who covers the spread where there is one, and who wins the next quarter. Votes show the split.

Lineups show the starters once they are posted, then the bench. Positions are point guard (PG), shooting guard (SG), small forward (SF), power forward (PF) and center (C). Each row shows injury status when one is reported.

Standings show each conference as one table. Ties are broken first by head-to-head results, then by conference record and by later steps set out in the league's rulebook.