The defending WNBA champion Las Vegas Aces have secured the top overall seed.

The regular WNBA season ended on a dramatic note with the Washington Mystics winning over the New York Liberty on a last-second shot, which helped the defending champions Las Vegas Aces secure the top spot in the playoffs. The playoffs, featuring eight teams, are scheduled to begin on Wednesday.

Brittney Sykes of the Mystics scored a winning shot with just five-tenths of a second remaining, sealing a 90–88 victory over the Liberty. The Liberty finished second in the league with a final record of 32–8. Meanwhile, the Aces won their final game against Phoenix 100–85 and finished at the top with a record of 34–6, despite not needing to win.

Las Vegas coach Becky Hammon expressed her delight and praised her team’s efforts, saying, “If you had said 34–6 to me back in May, I would have jumped at that in a second. And here we are. The amount of energy and effort [the players] put into being professionals, their approach to the game — they were so good.” The Washington Mystics and New York Liberty will have a few days off before they face each other in a best-of-three first-round series, starting on Friday at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center.

The Liberty, seeded at number 7, will take on Washington, which has a record of 19–21. The defending champions, the Aces, who were also the number 1 seed for the second season, will play the number 8 seed Chicago Sky in a series starting on Wednesday at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

The Sky has an 18–22 record. The number 3 seed Connecticut Sun, with a record of 27–13, will host the number 6 Minnesota Lynx, which has a record of 19–21, on Wednesday. The number 4 seed Dallas Wings, which has a record of 22–18, will host the number 5 seed Atlanta Dream, which has a record of 19–21, on Friday in the other first-round series opener. The winners of the first round will progress to the semifinals in a best-of-five series.