The Las Vegas Aces are best defined by their ability to understand and then to disrupt.
Steals and blocks are the two defensive cornerstones of a team looking to claim their third championship in just four years. And both of these metrics require a fully locked-in defence that is on the prowl, ready to make a game-defining read.
It's in the most focused moments that huge momentum-shifting baskets are deflected by mere fingertips, or the swing of the game altered as A'ja Wilson leaps in front of a pass.
But disruption in Vegas didn’t come from just their star player — Chelsea Gray had three blocks and three steals over the four quarters, while Jewell Loyd also contributed two blocks and three steals.
The Mercury kept having the ball taken just as they would bring it to their sweet spot right near the net, a ploy the Aces had planned to execute after drives and layups contributed most of Phoenix’s baskets in Game 1.
On-ball disruptions quickly multiplied into other difficulties as the Aces pulled off a strategic and focused 91-78 Game 2 victory.
Triple threat
The Aces have come a long way over the last two games from the team that had to go to overtime to secure a series-clinching win against Indiana Fever bench players.
As the Aces went up 2-0 in the series, Wilson was a huge offensive factor as she combined with Jackie Young for 60 total points. Gray helped set many of those buckets up and flirted with a triple-double as she landed 10 points, 10 dimes and eight rebounds.
In the first half, the Aces were quite reliant on one tried-but-true trick: a fast break in transition to set up easy scoring opportunities. Gray met Wilson with full-court passes that beat the Mercury defence and cleared the way for easy baskets. And, in breaks where Thomas was able to get down the floor and crowd the paint in time, the quick transition slowed to a steady offence as the Aces established a perimeter flow that used Jewell Lyod and other shooters.
These pushes up the floor were often generated by defensive rebounds or sneaky steals and would help kickstart huge Aces runs that switched the balance of the game. In the first half alone, the home team went on two massive runs — 10-0 and 7-0 — to take the lead twice and forced the Mercury to use two timeouts.
With a perfect pipeline from Gray to Wilson, the four-time MVP had her highest scoring playoff half with 20 points and came just one away from her Game 1 points total in just the first 20 minutes. Her impact was made even more unbearable for the Mercury in the second when Alyssa Thomas had to spend extended time on the bench after dishing three personal fouls.
Young jumped in on the action too with a breakout third quarter where she had 21 points. The 28-year-old guard was instrumental in building a 10-point lead that would quickly suffocate the Mercury and then increase beyond reach for the rest of the game.
No more bounce-back Mercury wins
So far these playoffs the Phoenix Mercury have lost all their series openers, but then have gone on to take all of the rest of the games.
After going down one against the reigning champions in New York they responded with two wins, and then in the semifinals against the Lynx they repeated the trend and went 3-0 after Game 1.
That triumphant pattern, however, has ended in the Finals.
The Mercury were lifted to a strong start in the first quarter by Kahleah Copper as she drained all of her first four shots, including three three-pointers for 11 of her team’s 27 points in the first frame. But, as Copper took every offensive opportunity, the rest of the Mercury struggled to find the shots they are accustomed to taking. With the Aces locking down the drive option, the Mercury bigs were left to take shots along the perimeter and had difficulty getting those to fall.
Satou Sabally was the only other Mercury player to find success from the arc, but her two conversions required nine attempts. Her downfall was a lack of patience as she was lured into offensive decisions that mimicked the speed the Aces were flaunting. By the time Sabally had turned her offence around and scored 22 points, the game was already decided.
Thomas’ early foul trouble also caused the team to retrograde as she spent considerable time on the bench in the second quarter, leaving Wilson without the desired defensive matchup. By the time head coach Nate Tibbetts felt comfortable enough to bring Thomas back in, the Aces were already in stride with Gray, Young, and Loyd each contributing big shots.
By the final few minutes of play, the gap had grown too big to escape and after an injury scare with Sabally, Tibbetts opted to remove his top players and ride out the loss.
