Western Conference: What we learned in Game 2 & what comes next

The Round One Best-of-3 Series grind of the Audi 2025 MLS Cup Playoffs rolls on – for some teams.

From the West, two clubs have booked a Conference Semifinal trip while another four await a decisive Game 3 next weekend. For two others, the season has rolled up after a quick, two-game trip and rolled into a long, three-month offseason.

We’ll soon have post-mortems for the eliminated teams. In the meantime, let’s break down what we saw in Game 2. PORTLAND TIMBERS 2 (3) - 2 (2) SAN DIEGO FC

Game 2 in a nutshell: For about the first 60 minutes, it was a back-and-forth, rhythmless affair. A big part of that was a freaking terrifying injury (fractured cheekbone) to San Diego goalkeeper CJ dos Santos midway through the first half that took the starch out of the game just minutes after K