LAS VEGAS—It was a clash of the titans at Michelob ULTRA Arena on Saturday, and the electric atmosphere made it clear how palpable the anticipation for this matchup was.
On one side, the Las Vegas Aces, a dynasty in the making with three championships in four years spearheaded by arguably the greatest player the game has ever seen in A’ja Wilson. Opposite them were the Minnesota Lynx, the best team in the WNBA and a contender hoping to taste success for themselves with the lethal 1-2 punch of Napheesa Collier and Olivia Miles.
With the recent success of both teams, this is the WNBA’s heavyweight main event playing out on the hardwood.
In the end, the Lynx were the team that was built to last, building a lead in the second half to help hold off the Aces 90-84.
Despite the result not going the way they wanted, though, Aces head coach Becky Hammon was encouraged by at least some things she noticed throughout the game.
“All things considered, I’m not too terribly upset,” said Hammon after the game. “I understand there’s definitely some things that we can do better. Minnesota played great, they did what they needed to do. I’m still more concerned with our group and trying to get to a point where we’re clicking on all cylinders.”
The mood all changed…
Heading into the second half, the Aces had to feel good keeping pace with the league leaders.
Then the third quarter took all momentum away. The Aces would go over four minutes between buckets, allowing the Lynx to tilt the table with a 10-2 run. From that point on, the Lynx were able to keep the Aces at arm’s length and take the wind out of their sails before they could get back.
“We weren’t scoring the basketball. We were stuck on 52 points,” said Hammon.
“I think we had six or seven turnovers in that third quarter, so it was our offensive woes kind of gave us defensive woes. We have to be more efficient offensively against this team and make them take the ball out. Some of them are live ball turnovers, just tough situations.”
Glass eaters
Despite the loss, this was arguably the best game the Aces have gotten in terms of rebounding.
NaLyssa Smith secured 12 rebounds for herself (nines of which being offensive rebounds), as well as 17 points in a double-double effort. Wilson would add seven rebounds on top of a game-high 32 points, and Chelsea Gray and Jewell Loyd would secure three boards apiece.
“Second-chance points is something we’re great at,” said Smith on why the offensive rebounds are something to build on. “Just trying to get the team another opportunity to score the ball and just going to rebound aggressively and playing out of that.”
Star-studded ensemble
The challenge with the Lynx is often who needs to get the defensive attention, as Minnesota has so many players that can score at will.
Miles proved why she is already a MVP candidate, posting a team-high 23 points, eight assists and four rebounds. Despite foul trouble limiting her minutes, Collier also got involved with 19 points, including a pair of triples in the fourth quarter to keep the Aces on ice. In all, each of the six players who played 25 minutes or more for Minnesota put up at least 12 points, which is a testament to the championship favorite’s depth.
“When you look at the stat sheet, they got six people in double figures,” emphasized Hammon. “It wasn’t any one steady diet. It was them kind of playing really great as a team and taking what our defense was giving them.”