Las Vegas Aces Clinch WNBA Title: 3rd Championship in 4 Years

The Las Vegas Aces swept the stubborn Phoenix Mercury 4-0 in the WNBA’s first-ever Best-of-7 Finals to clinch their 3rd title in 4 years. The Aces capitalized on the absence of Mercury’s top scorer, Satou Sabally, to win Game 4 after fighting hard to win the first 3 games. Minus their top gun who had been sidelined due to a concussion suffered in Game 3, there was simply no way the Mercury could match up with the souped-up Aces, bowing in Game 4, 97-86.

The Aces struggled early in the playoffs, barely beating the Seattle Storm 2-1 in the first round, before nipping the undermanned Indiana Fever in the semifinals 3-2. To illustrate how close they were to elimination, they won Game 3 against the Storm by a mere point, 74-73. Against the Fever, they were dragged into overtime in the crucial Game 5, before they finally took the win, 107-98. This was against an Indiana team that resembled the walking wounded. This was not a good look for the Aces, showing a vulnerability that a focused opponent could take advantage of.

The Phoenix Mercury, on the other hand, had been overachieving in the post-season. First, they came from behind to outclass the defending champs New York Liberty 2-1. They then stepped up their game even further, upsetting the top-seeded Minnesota Lynx 3-1 to reach the Finals. These twin series wins were a pleasant surprise for the Mercury fans, giving them much to look forward to in the Finals. Now in the first year of the post-Diana Taurasi era, no one had expected their newly-revamped team to reach this deep in the playoffs.

The Aces’ A’ja Wilson stood tall, winning the Finals MVP, after cornering the Defensive Player of the Year, the regular season MVP and the WNBA’s scoring title for the season. In the final game of the season, A’ja tossed in 31 points and collected 9 rebounds, almost recording another double-double, in stamping her class over the opposition. She got solid support from her 2 co-stars, Jackie Young and Chelsea Gray, who both tallied 18 points. The Aces’ championship pedigree was on full display in Game 1, where they came from behind in the last quarter to win 89-86. In Game 3, it took a Wilson turn-around jumpshot with time expiring to eke out a 90-88 win. Underachieving in the first 2 rounds of the playoffs, the Aces finally came alive when it mattered most, the WNBA Finals.

For the Mercury, Kahleah Copper and Alyssa Thomas tried their darndest in Game 4, contributing 30 and 17 points respectively, but the absence of Satou Sabally simply was too much to bear. DeWanna Bonner, acquired in midseason after leaving Indiana, tallied 10 points in the losing effort. Be that as it may, this has been a productive year for the Mercury, who were not expected to do battle in the playoffs.

With the Aces taking home the championship trophy, this year’s WNBA season ends. It has been a great season with ticket sales and TV ratings moving up the scales. The arrival of Caitlin Clark last year, as well as others who folowed, have done tremendous wonders for the league, and it is time now for the league to reflect on its growth as the collective bargaining negotiations begins soon. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, in a brotherly gesture of support, expressed optimism that the impasse between the WNBA and the players would get fixed soon, although much is needed to be done to repair the relationship between the players and WNBA Commish Cathy Engelbert.

For now, it’s back to the NBA!

Cover pic courtesy of GMA Network. Other pics courtesy of: New York Post, USA Today, Las Vegas Aces -WNBA, ClutchPoints, France 24, Oregon Live, AP News, The IX Basketball, Boston Globe. For a closer look, just click on the pics.