LAS VEGAS — In the Las Vegas Aces’ run through the WNBA playoffs, there has been one consistent concern for Becky Hammon: how her team handles success. They followed up a dominant victory in the postseason opener — their 17th in a row — by blowing a double-digit lead to Seattle in the second game. Then, they eked out a win in Game 3 to keep their season alive, but came out flat against Indiana in the first game of the semifinals. And with a chance to close out the shorthanded Fever in four games
LAS VEGAS — In the Las Vegas Aces’ run through the WNBA playoffs, there has been one consistent concern for Becky Hammon: how her team handles success.
They followed up a dominant victory in the postseason opener — their 17th in a row — by blowing a double-digit lead to Seattle in the second game. Then, they eked out a win in Game 3 to keep their season alive, but came out flat against Indiana in the first game of the semifinals. And with a chance to close out the shorthanded Fever in four games, Las Vegas’ defense wasn’t up to par in its first closeout opportunity, requiring a decisive Game 5 and overtime.
The Aces had a chance to string together three consecutive wins for the first time this postseason on Sunday, a chance to finally demonstrate the consistency that turned their season around and got them to the No. 2 seed in the standings.
Championship teams sustain success. And Las Vegas is now two wins away from its third title in four years after a dominant 91-78 win over the Phoenix Mercury in Game 2 of the WNBA Finals on Sunday.
Jackie Young led the way for the Aces, setting a franchise record for points in a finals game with 32. Her 21 points in the third quarter was a WNBA record for any finals quarter as Las Vegas took a double-digit lead and never looked back. A’ja Wilson wasn’t far behind with 28 points of her own. The duo that Hammon refers to as the best player in the world and the best two-way guard looked the part, setting the tone after a game when their bench carried the day.
This story will be updated.
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
Las Vegas Aces, Phoenix Mercury, WNBA
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Category: General Sports