When it comes to the postseason, they come from two different worlds.

	Katie Smith hopes to lead playoff-newcomer Minnesota to the second round.

Los Angeles has advanced to the WNBA playoffs every season since 1999, winning back-to-back titles the past two years. Minnesota, on the other hand, is making its first postseason appearance in the franchise's five-year history.

Can the newcomer topple the old favorite? Can the Lynx end L.A.'s quest for a threepeat? Here's our take on how the Western Conference first-round matchup might shape up.

Series history
West top seed Los Angeles went 4-0 against Minnesota, the West's fourth seed, this season, winning by an average of 7.8 points. While the Sparks' most recent victory over the Lynx was a blowout (23-point margin), L.A.'s other three wins were by four or fewer points. The Sparks, however, have won 16 consecutive games against Minnesota.

Los Angeles
Strengths: After winning the past two WNBA championships, the Sparks have plenty of playoff experience, and that goes a long way in this league. If that wasn't a big enough advantage, consider L.A.'s talent. All five starters have earned all-star accolades at least once in the WNBA. That is a loaded roster. Any team that has three legitimate stars usually does very well. The Sparks have five stars, one at every position, including perennial MVP candidate Lisa Leslie.

Weakness: Los Angeles' depth is very suspect. Through Sunday, those five starters were combining for 71.7 points, which translates to 96 percent of the Sparks' offense (they averaged 73.7 points through Sunday). Those five also account for 30.9 rebounds a game. Losing Rhonda Mapp last week (she was dismissed Aug. 22 for a drug violation) hurts. Although she averaged just 10.6 points, Mapp was a veteran who could have been useful in the playoffs. Instead, the Sparks are a bit weaker in the middle, and perhaps more susceptible to foul trouble or injuries.

	L.A.'s DeLisha Milton ranks among the top 15 players in the league in both scoring and rebounding.

Minnesota
Strengths: The Lynx are very balanced and have a strong core group. Superstar Katie Smith, who can play any position on the floor and is one of game's all-time greats, leads the way with an 18.2 scoring average. Teresa Edwards has been a great addition. She gets the ball to the right people at the right time and understands the tempo of the game. Edwards isn't a consistent scorer (5.3 points per game), but she has had a solid first season in the league.

Tamika Williams continues to prove how intelligent she is on the court, and Sheri Sam and Svetlana Abrosimova can give you points with different looks. Reserve Kristi Harrower (16.1 minutes per game) also is an important ingredient on this team. She has a nice outside shot and gives the Lynx some reliability and depth at the point. First-year coach Suzie McConnell-Serio has done a tremendous job building chemistry in Minnesota and getting all the pieces of the puzzle together, and knows what the playoffs are like after her playing days in Cleveland.

Weakness: With the Lynx making their first postseason appearance, a lack of experience could hurt. At this point of the season, it's always important to have someone on your roster who has been to the playoffs before. You need someone who can take over in the locker room and tell the rest of the team, "When I was in the playoffs, we .... " But Minnesota doesn't have that sort of player, someone who has been part of and had a big impact on a deep postseason run.

At this level, that can hurt, because those are the sort of players who are ready to step up mentally, physically and emotionally in the playoffs, who have enough confidence to raise their game to another level. Edwards, a five-time Olympian, certainly has plenty of basketball experience, but can she or Smith step it up another notch here?

Also, while Minnesota's roster is solid, it doesn't have four or five established stars like L.A. It will be tough to keep pace with the Sparks' studs.

How they match up
Janell Burse, Tamika Williams and Michele VanGorp deserve a lot of credit for working very hard together, but Minnesota doesn't have the experience in the middle to match up with L.A.'s very dominant inside game. Lisa Leslie is the best center in the world, and DeLisha Milton is playing very well since returning from her injury. Though she scored only five points Saturday, Milton averaged 18.3 points and shot 53 percent from the floor in her first three games back (she's averaging 13.4 on the season).

Expect L.A. to try to establish its inside game early, getting the ball inside to Leslie and Milton. Leslie will look to establish herself down low from tipoff.

X-factor
Minnesota must play physically, especially inside. The pressure is really on Burse, Williams and VanGorp to control the boards to take away L.A.'s second-chance shots and prevent the Sparks from running. That's a huge responsibility, and will force these three to step to the forefront very quickly.

Nancy Lieberman, an ESPN analyst and Hall of Famer, is a regular contributor to ESPN.com's women's basketball coverage. Contact her at www.nancylieberman.com.