Column Stuff You Might Have Heard
WNBA Finals scheduled for best-of-whatever

The Phoenix Mercury beat the Indiana Fever last night, pushing the WNBA Finals to another game as long as enough people show up to open the arena and turn on the lights and scoreboard and stuff. "Most leagues have a best-of-five or best-of-seven format for their playoff rounds," says WNBA president Donna Orender. "Our setup is more free-flowing. We play as long as we can until no one cares anymore." Under that format, the 2009 WNBA season is actually the first season in league history to last past the opening weekend of preseason games. "It's quite an accomplishment for the league," says Orender. "It's due to the growing popularity of women's basketball and to the fact that I was able to get a key for all of the gyms."