Only three out of eight games demanded a 3 rd game to decide the winner . Two from Western Conference Seattle vs FC Dallas and Houston Dynamo vs . Real Salt Lake City . Only one on Eastern
Conference , Columbus vs . the resilient Atlanta United .
At Lumen Field , Seattle , once more , proved it is their fortress . And if it ’ s a title on the line you practically don ’ t stand a chance . — Dallas fought hard but Seattle fought equally and overcame all obstacles to secure the 3 points on their field with the help of its formidable 13 th player , the non-stop cheering fans .
Houston advanced . Once again showed that is familiar with the now-or-never game . They overcame Mess-less but robust Inter Miami to grab the US Open Cup champions last September . Now , at home Shell Energy Stadium , hosting Real Salt Lake for Match 3 to advance to the Western Conference Semifinal just passed by leaving RSL out of the competition .
At Lower . com Field , Columbus advanced by shattering Atlanta ’ s dream of raising another MLS Cup trophy . The Crew got the Eastern Conference Semifinal spot after going 3 matches in their best-of-three series with Atlanta . Columbus took the first matchup at home 2 x 0 before falling 4 x 2 in the 2nd match in Atlanta .
The third at home 4x2 win to advance . The Crew ended the regular season with a 16-9-9 record and 57 points for the third overall seed in 2023 .
RESUME of RD of 16 Best-of-Three Games : The 8 teams that advanced to the next Round are : Seattle , Houston , Columbus , Orlando , Cincinnati , Philadelphia , LAFC , Kansas City .
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