WNBA Hosts First Championship

On Aug. 30, 1997, the WNBA held its first ever championship game.  

The game took place at the Compaq Center in Houston, Texas and saw the Houston Comets defeat the New York Liberty 65-51 to capture the league’s inaugural championship.

The Houston Comets and New York Liberty had the two best records in the regular season finishing 18-10 and 17-11 respectively.  

Since the WNBA was only an eight team league, only four playoff spots were available with New York beating Phoenix in one semi-final and Houston getting past Charlotte in the other.  

Houston Comets guard Cynthia Cooper was named the game’s Most Valuable Player, capping off a great season for her.

To go along with the finals MVP, Cooper also won the regular season Most Valuable Player and was the league’s top scorer.  

She would go on to win both awards again the next season and won four championships as a member of the Houston Comets.