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Las Vegas takes third of four away from Golden State, inch up in standings
- Terrel Emerson
- Aug 7
- 3 min read
The final game of a regular season series that could help shape the seedings in the WNBA playoffs went the way the Las Vegas Aces wanted it to as the team continues to creep up the league standings.
After beating Golden State at home Sunday afternoon, the Aces topped the Valkyries again Wednesday, Aug. 6 from Chase Center, this time by a final score of 78-72. Las Vegas now has back-to-back wins.
“When things aren’t going good it can make you question some things that maybe you thought you were super strong in,” head coach Becky Hammon said. “For me, when things aren’t going well it has to go back to the foundation. What is the base problem here?”
A half-game separated the two who sat in the seventh and eighth spots in the WNBA standings entering Wednesday. The most recent win took the Aces two games over .500 as they now sit at 16-14 on the year.
Wednesday was a one-off road game ahead of a three-game homestand for Las Vegas. Up next, the team opens its homestand with a Friday, Aug. 8 meeting against Seattle.
That contest against the Storm is set for a 7 p.m. tip-off from the Michelob Ultra Arena.
“I think my biggest thing is making sure we can stack wins,” forward A’ja Wilson said. “And do it the right way. We can’t get too high off our highs like we’re going to be satisfied because we’re winning a couple of games.”
Surviving minutes without Wilson on the floor was a difficult thing for the Aces to do last time out despite the winning outcome.
Golden State closed the first quarter on a 7-0 run and carried that into its first lead of the game early in the second quarter. Ultimately, that run would be stretched to 12-0 by the visitors.
Las Vegas made its first field goal of the second quarter about two and a half minutes in. That came after the team went the final 2:38 of the first quarter without a point.
Wilson tallied 14 total points in the first half on her way to a nearly identical second 20-minute session. She closed the night with a game-high 27 points on a near perfect 8-of-11 from the field to go along with seven rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks.
Her stat line included a perfect 11-for-11 from the free throw line as well.
The Valkyries made another run early in the fourth quarter with Wilson on the bench yet again. It took the Aces nearly four full minutes to score their first points of the fourth quarter.
At one point of the fourth, Golden State had trimmed the once 10-point deficit down to four.
Upon returning to the floor, Wilson’s mere presence on both ends was enough to help steady the rocking ship for Las Vegas. She’d score just four points in the final seven and a half minutes of the game while anchoring the team’s defensive effort.
“Just executing the gameplan at a higher level,” Hammon said. “More attention to detail, trying not to let those little things slip and stay on top of those little things that really help you win.”
As a team, Las Vegas committed 16 turnovers in the win but was able to force its opponent to 13 turnovers on the other end. Furthermore, the home team turned those 13 turnovers into eight points on the way to nine total fast break points.
In total, the Aces racked up nine team steals and five total blocks. Those numbers doubled the output of the Valkyries which included seven steals and zero blocks.
“I feel like a good block can change the momentum of a game,” Wilson said. “It could be a big bucket that you just got a big stop [on]. Just the tenacity of it, it’s just kind of nasty. Especially when you get a good one because it can kind of wake your team up.”
Guard Jackie Young added 14 points, four assists and five steals which moved her into the fourth spot on the franchise’s all-time steals list.
Guard Jewell Loyd was the final player in double-figures with 14 points on 50% shooting.
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