LAS VEGAS (August 13, 2023)—Their shots weren’t falling through the first 30 minutes of play, but the Aces never panicked and came away with a 86-65 victory over the Atlanta Dream (15-16) on Sunday evening in Michelob ULTRA Arena. The win improved the Aces record to 27-3 on the season and stretched their home winning streak to 20 games. A’ja Wilson finished with a game-high 21 points. Also recording double figure points for the Aces were Jackie Young (17), Chelsea Gray (13), Kelsey Plum (13) and Cayla George (11), while Kiah Stokes grabbed a game-best 12 boards. Allisha Gray scored 19 for Atlanta.
Box Score | Photos | Highlights
KEY RUNS
First Quarter Highlights (Las Vegas 20, Atlanta 19)
After making the first basket of the game, Las Vegas missed each of its next 4 shots from the floor, while Atlanta rattled off a 9-0 run. The Aces fought their way back to a 13-all tie with 2:40 to go, with the help of 5 points from Young. Las Vegas shot just 37.5% (6-16 FGs) from field goal range and 28.6% (2-7 3P FGs) from deep, and Atlanta was 50% (8-16 FGs) from the floor and missed the two 3-pointers it attempted. Young led the Aces with 8 points, while Allisha Gray and Cheyenne Parker both led the Dream with 4.
Second Quarter Highlights (Las Vegas 36, Atlanta 30)
The two teams shot a combined 2 of 11 from the floor during the first 4:11 of the period (Dream 0-5, Aces 2-6). Atlanta tied the game on two occasions, and never let the Aces get more than 5 points ahead until the final bucket of the quarter. Las Vegas went 6 of 19 (.316) from the field and 2 of 5 (.400) from 3-point range, while Atlanta hit 4 of 18 (.222) from the floor and missed all five 3-pointers it attempted. Chelsea Gray and George tied for 6 points atop the Aces’ scorer sheet and Parker again led the Dream with 4.
Third Quarter Highlights (Las Vegas 58, Atlanta 50)
The Dream put the Aces on their heels early, as an 8-0 run allowed them to retake the lead (38-36) at 6:54 for the first time since late in the first quarter. But a pair of Chelsea Gray free throws and a Wilson jumper kick-started an 8-0 Las Vegas run midway through the period to put the Aces back on top by 6. The Dream cut the Las Vegas lead to two on 2 occasions, but they couldn’t close the gap any further. A Young 3-pointer with less than a second remaining gave the Aces their largest lead of the game to that point. The Dream were 40% (6-15 FGs) from the floor and made their first 3-pointers, sinking 2 of their attempted 3. The Aces continued to struggle with the rock, nailing just 35% (7-20 FGs) of their field goals and 33.3% (2-6 3FGs) from deep. A’ja Wilson led all scorers in the period with 9 points.
Fourth Quarter Highlights (Las Vegas 86, Atlanta 65)
Wilson scored the Aces first 8 points of the quarter, putting them up by double-digits, and the Dream never really threatened again as Las Vegas closed the game on a 13-3 run. Las Vegas made 59.1% (13-22 FGs) of its shots from the floor while the Dream hit 38.5% (5-13 FGs) of their field goal attempts. Wilson and Plum both led Las Vegas with 8 points, while Allisha Gray led Atlanta with 7.
KEY STATS
It has been 1,248 days since Breonna Taylor was murdered. In 2022, three officers were federally charged with conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and civil rights violations. One of the officers later pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy, marking the first conviction in the case.
The ACLU is currently tracking 492 anti-LGBTQ+ bills in the United States.
Atlanta turned the ball over 17 times, 13 of which were steals by Las Vegas, for 13 Aces points. The Aces only coughed up the rock 9 times, from which the Dream turned into 7 points.
Las Vegas’ bench provided 17 points, Atlanta’s 11.
The Aces took 15 more shots than the Dream thanks to an 8-5 edge in offensive rebounds, and a 17-9 advantage in turnovers.
Las Vegas made 7 of 23 three-pointers, while the ream made 4 of 16.
Over the first 3 quarters, the Aces made 34.5% (19-55 FGs) of their field goal attempts, but their 59.1% (13-22 FGs) in the 4th quarter raised their overall shooting percentage on the night to 41.6% (32-77 FGs).
GAME NOTES
The Aces are averaging a league-high 94.0 ppg and posting league-bests of of 49.6 percent shooting from the field, 38.9 from 3-point, 83.0 percent from the line, a 114.7 offensive efficiency, and a 97.4 defensive efficiency rating.
Wilson (3,485) scored 21 points to pass Becky Hammon (3,474) for 2nd on the Aes franchise career scoring chart. Sophia Young-Malcolm is first at 4,300.
George scored a season-high 11 points.
Stokes grabbed 12 rebounds, reaching double digits for the 3rd time this season.
The Aces are 27-3 on the year, which ties them with three other teams for the best record in WNBA history through 30 games—the 1998 Houston Comets, and 2000 and 2001 Los Angeles Sparks.
Las Vegas extended its home winning streak to 20 games, making them just the second team in league history to win 20 or more in a row at home (Los Angeles Sparks).
Alysha Clark (back) did not play for the Aces.
NEXT UP
The Aces have three games remaining in their home stand spanning from Aug. 11-19—back-to-back contests against New York in the Commissioner’s Cup championship game (Aug. 15) and a regular season meeting (Aug. 17), and the season finale against Los Angeles (Aug. 19).