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The Las Vegas Aces returned to the WNBA semifinals on Friday with a vengeance, defeating the New York Liberty 95-81 in “The House” in front of more than 10,000 fans. The Liberty kicked off the semifinal series with the privilege of home-court advantage. Game 3 of the semifinals played out in a packed house at Michelob Ultra Arena in Las Vegas on Friday.
The energy from the crowd fueled the “high stakes” team. The back-to-back champions played aggressively on both the offense and defense and the packed House offered an uncanny electrifying energy from the tip.
It was a steady back-and-forth between the two amazingly talented teams, with Jackie Young and Kesley Plum delivering back-to-back threes on numerous occasions. Chelsea “The Point Gawd” Gray was on fire Friday night, offering up impeccable, often no-look, assists and putting up the buckets. The 2x champions were again playing in magical synchrony; reads were on point, placement was intentional, and buckets were timely. At one point, the two-time champions led by 25 points, which was the biggest lead of the night.
“I thought that was probably our most complete game of the season. It’s the game I’ve been waiting for and believing in that they had,” coach Becky Hammon said in the post-game conference.
And so did the fans. The crowd was alive in red, black, and gray, hoisting cards that read “we believe” and “high stakes”, and game three was indeed high stakes. After back-to-back losses in New York, Las Vegas needed to make Friday night’s win a reality to stay in the fight for the three-peat.
“The minute you get comfortable that’s when you’re exposed. I think you just go one game at a time. We executed this game,” Gray said after Friday night's win against New York.
The way that the 2022/2023 WNBA champions play together that sets them apart. Whether that’s Gray ready and waiting with smooth assists, Plum and Young putting up threes back-to-back, or veteran Tiffany Hayes picking up where one of her teammates may have dropped the ball, the team works well together and that’s what makes them a candidate for the three-peat.
The night started on a high note, with Hayes receiving the WNBA Sixth Player of the Year award, and it’s no wonder. While her record is a wonder on her own, she comes into every game with the Las Vegas Aces with aggression, determination, and tactic. The veteran is often there and on the waiting, ready to attack and/or pick up the slack.
“She’s always just going in and making something happen,” Plum said in Friday’s post-game presser.
“Offensively, defensively, changing the pace of the game, the intensity, and we're super grateful to have her, and we’re super grateful that she came out of retirement.”
In her 12th WNBA season and first with the Aces, the recently retired guard played in 33 of Las Vegas’ 40 regular-season games. This season, Hayes averaged 9.5 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game this season. On Friday night, she scored 11 points and was essential on both the offense and especially the defense.
The Liberty’s offense was still a challenge for the two-time champions to tackle. Breanna “Stewie” Stewart had 12 points in the first half alone, 19 total. But, Sabrina Ionescu, who is often a challenge, only put up four. That goes to show that it was less of a defense problem for the Aces and more of just an excellent show of offensive talent by New York. But that’s often easier to do when you’re home.
Containing Stewie and Ionescu
The Aces were intensely focused in Game 3 of the WNBA semifinals. As Hammon said after the two-time champions’ back-to-back losses in the series in New York, Friday night’s game was “do or die”. Las Vegas started the second half on top and continued to increase its lead the remainder of the game. A big part of their strategy: keeping Ionescu and Stewart from scoring.
“It starts on the defensive end, and I think we were proactive, just stirring it up and trying to make Sabrina uncomfortable,” Hammon said in the post-game conference.
Las Vegas was impeccable about stops. Stewart was limited to scoring 19 points and 6 rebounds, but the Liberty giant was guarded at every turn. If New York had the chance to get to the bucket, either KP or Gray stopped them in their tracks.
The Aces gave up just 6 points on 9 turnovers while flipping New York’s 12 miscues into 13 points. Offensively, the Liberty lacked movement, leading to low scores across the board. It was a shutout performance, with Las Vegas closing the distance on Ionescu. The Liberty star has been heavy with the threes this semifinal series, scoring nearly half of her attempts. But game 3 was a different story.
“Our attention to detail defensively was super sharp. AC was great; A’ja was able to get it in the passing lane and not making that look so easy,” Gray said after Friday’s win.
The Aces outscored the Liberty 42-28 in points in the paint. Star Aces and 3x MVP A’ja Wilson delivered 19 points and 14 rebounds. Jackie Young led in points for the 2x champs with 24 points; Plum was shortly after with 20 points. Gray was often the key to these buckets, offering 7 astonishing assists.
The Liberty was able to outscore the Aces 13-8 on second-chance points.
However, while Ioescu had 5 rebounds, 5 assists, and a block she was limited to four points in total and zero in the first half. She wasn’t able to score any in Las Vegas’s outstanding third quarter when the back-to-back champions went on an impressive 17-2 run.
“They’re going to score the basketball; they’re a good team. But, you wanna make them take tough looks,” Gray said in the post-game presser on Friday.
“It was the same with Sabrina, attentive to detail, coming off the pick and roll, making sure she’s not comfortable.”
The Dawg in the Fight
Making their opponents uncomfortable seems to come natural for the Plum Dawg. The Dawg was out Friday night, making aggressive plays, helping to keep the ball moving, and getting those sweet buckets right on time. Her razor-sharp energy cuts through the challenges surrounding the championship team to compete on a higher level.
“She’s competitive as hell,” Hammon said after Friday’s win.
“She’s one of the greatest competitors I’ve ever been around. Male or female, she is a competitor.”
The two-time Olympian was influential n the paint and outside the perimeter. Plum made three shots from 3-point range, giving her 77 points in her postseason career, the 13th most in WNBA history. The All-Star also had three rebounds and two assists in Friday’s game. But, more than anything, she bought the energy and “edge” to Game 3 of the semifinals.
“I thought she played brilliant tonight: just decision-making, defense, everything. Everything was really on point, really with everybody,” Hammon said.
“I play hard all the time,” Plum said after Friday’s win.
“Sometimes, maybe I can get sped up a little bit, or maybe I try to be too aggressive if it doesn’t go my way, but also, sometimes willpower does go my way. So, it’s like this healthy balance.”
What lies ahead for the Aces
Though the sweet defeat is timely, the Aces still have a rough road ahead. The two-time champions must win the next two games to advance to the finals.
“We executed four quarters and so we start all over again on Sunday. We’re still down 2-1. We haven’t done anything,” Gray said on Friday.
The back-to-back champions displayed impeccable effort, athleticism, and sportsmanship in Friday night’s game. But, in order to keep up the momentum the galaxy of star athletes must stay true to their essence and nature of winning as a team.
If Las Vegas defeats New York, it’s off to the finals, where they could play the Connecticut Sun, who currently also sits down 2-1 to the Minnesota Lynx. The road ahead may be paved with challenges, but Friday night’s game served as a reminder that you can’t count out the 2x champions who are used to knocking down the walls they’ve been pushed up against.
Game 4 of the WNBA finals between New York and Las Vegas will be played on Sunday at Michelob Ultra Arena in Las Vegas. Tip-off is slated for 12 p.m. PST.
