seeds as well.We dont think there will be any challenge sellin

NEW YORK -- The WNBA changed its playoff format this season to ensure the best teams advanced and to create more of a buzz for the postseason.While the playoffs dont tip-off until Wednesday, the change definitely made for an exciting finish to the regular season. Half of the eight seeds werent determined until the final day of the regular season Sunday and only one game separated fifth place from eighth.This format is great as every game counts, said Atlantas Elizabeth Williams. We literally didnt know our seeds until the last game. I like the one and done, its kind of like March Madness in that respect.Williams one and done reference was in regards to the first two rounds of the playoffs, which will be single elimination contests with fifth-seeded Indiana hosting No. 8 Phoenix and seventh-seed Seattle playing at No. 6 Atlanta on Wednesday. The second round begins Saturday with New York and Chicago waiting -- and it will also be single elimination.The eight teams with the best record qualified for the playoffs, regardless of conference affiliation. And they were seeded according to their record.It definitely gives you a feeling that anyone has a chance to win, said Seattle guard Sue Bird. In the past if you were the four-seed in the conference you knew youd have a really tough time getting out of the opening round against the No. 1.Teams will be reseeded after every round. And while it turned out that four teams from both the Eastern and Western Conferences made the playoffs, the top teams with the best two records were both from the Western Conference. However, they wont play until potentially the WNBA Finals.The new WNBA playoff format is extremely fan-friendly, because were able to showcase across the best eight teams, full-stop, regardless of conference, said ESPN vice president for womens sports programming Carol Stiff.Minnesota and Los Angeles had the best marks all season long and earned them byes until the semifinals. The Lynx are looking to become the leagues first back-to-back champions since Los Angeles repeated in 2001-02.Thats the last time that the Sparks won a title, a drought they are trying to end.We know its going to be a series as opposed to one game, Sparks coach Brian Agler said of getting the bye. Its unchartered waters for everybody and I like it. I think it adds an element of urgency and an element of suspense throughout the season.Aglers team last played on Sept. 16 and wont play against until the 28th of the month.The dynamic will create an extremely competitive atmosphere, said Los Angeles Nneka Ogwumike. 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Uniteds eighth defeat of a wretched campaign means Liverpool, which currently occupies the fourth and final Champions League place, could go nine points clear of its fierce rival by beating West Bromwich Albion on Sunday. Charlie Adam scored both of Stokes goals at Britannia Stadium either side of Robin van Persies equalizer, with a miserable day for seventh-place United capped by first-half injuries to centre halves Jonny Evans and Phil Jones that forced them off. Jrue Holiday Jersey . They had already blown a double-digit lead, fans were hitting the exits, and a long seven-game road trip waited at the end. Greenville, South Carolina, will host first- and second-round games of the NCAA mens basketball tournament in March, seizing the games away from Greensboro, North Carolina, as the state of South Carolina benefited from a?ban of championship events from the state of North Carolina.The NCAA announced the move Friday, giving South Carolina its first championship mens basketball event since 2002. The move comes a year after the Confederate flag was removed from the state capitol in Columbia. The flag was the reason the NCAA previously wouldnt place official championship events in the state.Furman University and the Southern Conference will host the event on March 17 and 19, 2017.What a great opportunity for Furman, the Southern Conference and the city of Greenville, Furman athletic director Mike Buddie told ESPN. Our ultimate goal is to get future bids for 2019 and beyond and be in the regular rotation.The NCAA, along with the ACC, followed the lead of the NBA, which pulled its All-Star Game out of Charlotte, by removing any championship events in 2016-17 from North Carolina over the controversial HB2 law.The law, commonly known as the bathroom bill, was deemed discriminatory by LGBT groups over its determination for transgender people to use the bathroom of the gender indicated on their birth certificate, rather than their identity.The decision by the Board of Governors to open up the bidding process occurred in August and wrapped up this week. The official statement from the NCAA for pulling out of North Carolina was because of cumulative actions taken by the state concerning civil rights protections.We can associate what North Carolina is going through since we went through it ourselves, Buddie said. The NCAA has always been aware of social issues. They have balanced the joy of the student-athlete experience and taken the pulse of the nation. Were thrilled to be back in the pool in a position to host. Its great the NCAA saw fit to award us the opportunity.The NCAA said the tournament needed a site in the mid-Atlantic region with other first- and second-round sites to be hosted by Orlando, Indianapolis, Buffalo, Milwaukee, Tullsa, Sacramento and Salt Lake City.dddddddddddd.Geography played a huge role in this decision, the NCAAs Dan Gavitt told ESPN. Greenville is only 190 miles from Greensboro. All of the other options didnt offer that geographic balance. That had a significant role.The SEC womens tournament will be held in Greenville earlier in March. Clemson played its 2015 season in Greenville while Littlejohn Coliseum was undergoing a rehab project.Gavitt said as soon as the Confederate flag came down in the summer of 2015, Columbia and Greenville expressed an interest in bidding. Both bid for 2019-22 sites and will be viable options, Gavitt said.Buddie said the 14,000-seat Bon Secours Wellness Arena should be a fan-friendly experience, with seven hotels within a mile of the facility.A potential No. 1 or 2 seed Duke likely would have been in Greensboro, but now it could easily be slotted for nearby Greenville. The same could be true for other regional teams like Kentucky, North Carolina or Virginia, assuming they are in position to be top seeds as well.We dont think there will be any challenge selling out, Buddie said. Were smack in the middle of ACC and SEC country.The NCAA, in a release, said fans who bought tickets for Greensboro will have the first option of buying tickets for Greenville.This is only the third time the NCAA has chosen South Carolina to host the NCAA mens basketball tournament. The first was in 1970 in Columbia, and the last time was 2002 -- in Greenville.Other championships announced Friday that were originally slated for North Carolina were:* Division I womens soccer college cup, Dec. 2 and 4 in San Jose, California.* Division III mens and womens soccer championship, Dec. 2 and 3 in Salem, Virginia.* Division I womens golf championship, May 8-10 in Athens, Georgia.* Division III mens and womens tennis championships, May 22-27 in Chattanooga, Tennessee.* Division I womens lacrosse championship, May 26 and 28 in Boston.* Division II baseball championship, May 27-June 3 in Grand Prairie, Texas. ' ' '