The Las Vegas Aces are heading to the WNBA Semifinals. The Aces broke the tie for 9th-most wins by a coach in WNBA postseason history. Las Vegas beat the Seattle Storm at home in game three of the first round, 74-73. Wilson carried the third quarter to keep Las Vegas in the lead. The Aces broke the tie for 9th-most wins by a coach in WNBA postseason history.
The Aces took control to start the first quarter. A’ja Wilson tallied the first four points of the game. The Storm only scored at the charity stripe and off a steal in the first four minutes. Las Vegas was playing sharp defense. Wilson had a steal, and Jewell Loyd had a steal and a massive block. Skylar Diggins sank the first three-pointer of the game to trail the Aces by one point. The Storm took the lead for the first time with 1:30 remaining. Las Vegas struggled to get around Seattle’s defense and ended the period behind 19-14.
Chelsea Gray tied the game at 19-19 in the second quarter. Gray made the first three-pointer for the Aces and followed with a jump shot. Seattle’s offense was quick and aggressive while the Aces were making little mistakes, causing them to turn over the ball frequently. The teams were getting physical and had two stoppages due to blood. Las Vegas took back the lead with a Jackie Young three-pointer, putting the team ahead by two points. A foul allowed Nneka Ogwumike to tie the game 26-26 at the charity stripe. The Aces held Seattle to only nine points in the quarter and took a 33-26 lead.
The Storm started off hot in the third quarter, but the Aces held the lead thanks to free throws in the first three minutes. Wilson was the only Aces player to score until 2:09 left in the quarter. That’s when Gray made her second three-pointer of the night. Wilson ended the quarter making 14 of the 19 points. Las Vegas was able to keep the lead, even when Seattle tallied 22 points, at 52-48.
Quarter four started out very back-and-forth. The Aces balanced being ahead by two to four points. Shooting was much more consistent for both teams until there were five minutes left. Fouls and missed shots kept the score stable at 65-61. Ogwumike sank a three-pointer, and Seattle made two free throws to trail the Aces by one point. The rest of the game was largely determined by the players’ performances at the free-throw line. Seattle tied it up at 68-68 before Wilson made two at the charity stripe. Diggins hit a crucial three-pointer with 1:15 left, putting the Storm ahead 71-70. The Storm gained a lead of 73-72 with 19 seconds left in the game. Wilson missed her layup, but Young made the rebound. Seattle was unable to score in the last 12 seconds, and the Aces won 74-73.
Wilson led the game with 38 points. Young was right behind with 14 points. Gray was close to a double-double, with 12 points and eight assists. The Aces shot 45.9% from the field compared to Seattle’s 40%. The Storm had the upper hand in three pointers, shooting a 38.9%.
Next up, the Aces will play the Indiana Fever on Sunday at 12pm PT.
