LAS VEGAS (Sept. 21, 2024)—The Las Vegas Aces historic run at a 3-peat begins in earnest Sunday, Sept. 22, as they host the Seattle Storm in Game 1 of the First Round of the 2024 WNBA Playoffs. Tip is slated for 7 pm PT, and the game is being broadcast nationally on ESPN.

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A 27-13 record during the regular season earned the Aces the 4 seed in the postseason, as they finished 1 game behind the Connecticut Sun (28-12) and 2 games ahead of the Storm (25-15). Las Vegas was the hottest team in the WNBA over the final quarter of the season, going 9-1 over its final 10 games.

Although the Aces finished with the second most efficient offense in the league (106.1) on the year, it was the team’s defense that made the difference down the stretch. Las Vegas held 9 of 10 opponents to under 80 points during that time, and posted a defensive efficiency rating of 94.3, which was the second lowest in the WNBA. The improvement was most notable on the perimeter where Aces opponents made just 31.1 percent of their shots over the final 10 games.

The Aces took the season series from the Storm, 3 games to 1. Las Vegas’ defense played a large role in those games as well, limiting Seattle to 41.8 percent shooting from the field and 24.2 percent from beyond the arc.

Leading M’VP contender A’ja Wilson averaged 25.3 points, 11.8 rebounds, 2.25 steals and 2.25 blocks per game during the Storm series. Jackie Young added 19.5 points per game, while Kelsey Plum gave the Aces a trio of double digit scorers against Seattle averaging 15.8 points.

The Point Gawd, Chelsea Gray, who missed the first 12 games of the season recovering from an injury, averaged 8.3 points and 6.0 assists against the Storm in 3 games this year, while knocking down 36.4 percent of her 3-pointers.

Jewell Loyd let the Storm in scoring on the season (19.7 ppg) and in the 4-game series against Las Vegas (18.0 ppg), but the Aces limited her to 30.0 percent shooting overall and just 4 of 12 from distance. Skylar Diggins Smith struggled from beyond the arc against the Aces making 3 of 12 shots while averaging 16.0 points per game, and even though Nneka Ogwumike dropped 15.3 points per game over the 4 games, she made just 43.3 percent of her shots, well below her average of 51.1 percent.

Ezi Magbegor appeared in 3 of the games against Las Vegas in 2024, averaging 14.3 points and 12.7 rebounds. Gabby Williams, who joined the Storm after the Olympic break, scored 14 points in her lone appearance against the Aces this season.

Game 2 of the best-of-3 First Round Playoff series is slated for Tuesday, Sept. 24. Tip is at 6:30 pm PT, and will be broadcast on ESPN. Game 3, if necessary, will be played in Seattle on Thursday, Sept. 26 at an as-yet-to-be-determined time on ESPN2. The winner advances to the WNBA Semifinals where they will take on the winner of the series between the No. 1 seed New York Liberty and No. 8 Atlanta Dream.