MINNEAPOLIS, MN (July 3, 2022)—The Las Vegas Aces (15-6) fell behind early, Sunday afternoon, and never quite recovered, falling to the Minnesota Lynx (7-15), 102-71. See below for Commissioner’s Cup Implications.
KEY RUNS
First Quarter (Minnesota 33, Las Vegas 15)
The Lynx scored the first 13 points of the game. The Aces missed their first 4 shots and committed 1 turnover on their first 5 possessions. Jackie Young ended the run with a three-pointer. Aerial Powers nearly outscored the Aces by herself scoring 14 points in the first 10 minutes of play. Minnesota shot 66.7 from the field and 66.7 percent from three-point range in the quarter. The Lynx outrebounded Las Vegas 14-3.
Second Quarter (Minnesota 49, Las Vegas 35)
Minnesota still led by 15, 42-27, with 4:28 remaining in the half, but Las Vegas scored 8 of the next 10 to reduce the Lynx advantage to single digits. Minny scored the final 5 points of the quarter.
Third Quarter (Las Vegas 78, Minnesota 55)
Las Vegas sliced the Lynx’ advantage to 12 early, but Minnesota scored 11 in a row late to go up by 24. Aerial Powers had a game-high 25 points through three quarters.
Fourth Quarter (Las Vegas 102, Minnesota 71)
‘Nuff said.
KEY STATS
It has been 842 days since Breonna Taylor was murdered.
The Lynx made 50.0 percent of their shots compared to 36.8 percent for the Aces.
Minnesota out-rebounded Las Vegas 52-26 including 15-2 on the offensive glass.
The Lynx outscored the Ace 11-2 on second chance points, 12-5 in fast break points, and 34-20 in points in the paint.
Minnesota went 16 for 23 from the free throw line, while Las Vegas made 9 of 11.
GAME NOTES
The Aces 15-6 start is two games back of the best 21-game start in franchise history (2020).
Kelsey Plum scored in double figures for the 28th straight game and the 85th time in her career (12 points). Plum also connected on 3 three-pointers, making it 28 straight games in which she has connected on at least one from long distance—the longest active streak in the league.
A’ja Wilson scored in double figures for the 19th time this season and the 127th time in her career (10 points).
Jackie Young scored in double figures for the 17th time this season and the 58th of her career (10 points).
NEXT OPPONENT
The Aces return home to host the New York Liberty on Wednesday, July 6 at 7 pm PT on MyLVTV.
COMMISSIONER’S CUP REPERCUSSIONS & RAMIFICATIONS
The Aces and the Chicago Sky both finished Commissioner’s Cup play with 9-1 records, securing the Western and Eastern Conference spots in the Championship Game respectively. Still at stake is which team will host the Championship Game on July 26.
The first tiebreaker is head-to-head competition, but the teams split their two meetings so far on the year.
The second tiebreaker is overall winning percentage by July 7. Chicago is 15-5, and tonight’s loss drops Las Vegas to 15-6. The Aces have 1 game remaining on their schedule before the All-Star Break (vs. New York, July 6). Chicago has 2 games left (at Minnesota, July 6; at Indiana, July 7).
The third tiebreaker is cumulative point differential in Cup games. Chicago finished at + 82, while Las Vegas is +102 giving the Aces this tiebreaker should it come down to it.
Las Vegas heads out on an 11-day, 5-game road trip on July 28. If Chicago hosts the Cup Championship, that extends the Aces’ road trip to a 14-day, 6-game monstrosity. And nobody wants that. Nobody.