Around the W: The WNBA Finals are here!

The Las Vegas Aces and the Connecticut Sun are set to do battle in the Finals!

The WNBA semifinals have concluded and we are down to just two teams remaining for the WNBA Championship. In the first matchup, we saw the Las Vegas Aces defeat the Seattle Storm in four games in a much closer series than the 3-1 series would indicate.

In Game 1, the Seattle Storm surprised many people by stealing the first game of the series picking up a significant 76-73 road win. Jewell Loyd led the Storm in scoring with 26 points including what would be the game-winning basket. Breanna Stewart added 24 points and six rebounds. Tina Charles had her best game of the playoffs with 13 points and 18 rebounds. The 18 rebounds was a new franchise record in the playoffs for the Storm. Defensively, Seattle had their best game of the series. They held the potent Aces’ offense to just 73 points and really only allowed two players to have strong games. Chelsea Gray led Las Vegas with 21 points and Kelsey Plum added 20 points but made just 8-23 FG. The Storm limited MVP A’ja Wilson to only 8 points. Wilson did have a team-high 12 rebounds, however. Jackie Young was limited to 11 points well below her season average. Unfortunately for the Storm, they weren’t able to replicate this performance for the rest of the series.

In the 2nd game, Seattle had the chance to steal another road game but the Aces used excellent 2nd and 3rd quarters to gain control of the game. They outscored Seattle by 15 points over the course of those two periods and held on to win the game 78-73. This was a must-win for Las Vegas as they didn’t want to head to Seattle for two games down 0-2. With the win, Las Vegas evened the series at 1-1. A’ja Wilson was disgusted with her performance in Game 1 and she showed up in a big way to make up for it. Wilson finished the game with 33 points, 13 rebounds, and three blocked shots. Chelsea Gray finished with 19 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists. Plum added 18 points in the win. Breanna Stewart nearly matched Wilson finishing the game with 32 points and seven rebounds. Tina Charles added 17 points and nine rebounds. But no other Storm player scored more than eight points. The Acces were able to limit Jewell Loyd to eight points after she scored 26 in the first game.

Game 3 is one Storm fans and players won’t ever forget. An excellent game that appeared to have a storybook finish as Sue Bird knocked down a corner three-ball with less than a second to go after Seattle gave up a four-point lead with 11 seconds left in the game. It looked like they were well on their way to taking a 2-1 series lead over Las Vegas. They could have sealed the victory with a pair of free throws but Tina Charles missed both attempts. Then with under a second left, Seattle played horrible defense allowing Jackie Young to catch the ball near the rim. Instead of contesting the shot, Ezi Magbegor was concerned about fouling so she put her hands behind her back and allowed Young to lay the ball in easily to send the game to OT. Storm players were so shell-shocked and distraught that they came out completely flat in the overtime period as the Aces rolled to a 110-98 OT victory.

A’ja Wilson set a new playoff career-high with 34 points and 11 rebounds. Her 2nd playoff game in a row where she scored more than 30 points and collected more than 10 rebounds. Chelsea Gray destroyed Seattle all series long and this game was no exception. She finished with 29 points, a game-high 12 assists, and five rebounds. Kelsey Plum added 16 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists. And Riquna Williams added 14 points off the bench including hitting a critical three-pointer in the final 10 seconds to help send the game to overtime.

Game 3 was by far the Storm’s best performance on offense. They got excellent balanced scoring as six players scored in double figures. Breanna Stewart led the way with 20 points, 15 rebounds, and six assists. Both Sue Bird and Jewell Loyd finished with 17 points apiece. Bird also had a team-high eight assists. Tina Charles (16 points), Stephanie Talbot (12 points), and Magbegor (10) were the other players to contribute with double-digit scoring.

Game 4, the final game of the series, was more of the same. A lot of A’ja Wilson and even more Chelsea Gray. Wilson finished with 23 points, 13 rebounds, and three blocks. Gray continued to dominate with 31 points, a game-high 10 assists, and six rebounds. In this game, all four of the Aces’ top scorers contributed. Jackie Young had her best game of the series adding 18 points and five rebounds including scoring 10 in the final quarter where the Aces pulled away to finish off the Storm. Plum added 15 points and really kept Las Vegas close early in the game when her teammates struggled. Las Vegas outlasted Seattle 97-92.

On Seattle’s side, Breanna Stewart and Jewell Loyd put together the best duo performance in WNBA Playoff history. Both players did everything they could to keep their team’s season and Sue Bird’s career alive but it just wasn’t enough to overcome the high-powered Aces. Stewart set a new career-high with 42 points including 6-8 FG from beyond the three-point arc. Loyd finished with 29 points. The combined 71 points set a new record. Unfortunately for Seattle, the rest of the team didn’t do much of anything. The bench combined for just three points total and no other starters scored more than eight points.

All four of the games between Seattle and Las Vegas were close but the better team won the series. The Storm gave their best efforts but the Aces always had an answer and then some. As Las Vegas is the #1 overall seed, they will have homecourt advantage in the WNBA Finals.

In the other semifinal playoff series, we saw the Connecticut Sun upset the defending champions, the Chicago Sky in a series that went the full five games. Not many people predicted the Sun would win the series; especially after they fell behind in the series two games to one. It took winning two games in a row including Game 5 in Chicago to pull off the upset.

Similar to the Seattle/Las Vegas series, the underdog Connecticut Sun upset Chicago in Game 1 by a final score of 68-63. They used a 20-12 third quarter to take control of the game and did just enough in the 4th quarter to steal the first game on the road. DeWanna Bonner led four Sun players that scored in double figures. Bonner had 15 points, nine rebounds, and five assists. Alyssa Thomas was close to a triple-double adding 12 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists. Jonquel Jones also had 12 points and nine rebounds and Brionna Jones added 12 points off the bench. Candace Parker had one of the best playoff games of her illustrious career. She put up 19 points, 18 rebounds, six blocked shots, five assists, and four steals! Kahleah Copper added 12 points and Emma Meesseman scored 10 in the losing effort.

Game 2 - the Chicago Sky won pretty handily 85-77. Chicago got off to a very hot start outscoring Connecticut by 10 points (24-14) in the first quarter and led by 15 points at halftime (47-32). Even though the Sun won the fourth quarter 29-20 it wasn’t enough as the Sky evened the series 1-1. All five starters from Chicago scored in double figures. Parker led the team again with 22 points. Meesseman added 14 points and a team-high seven rebounds. Allie Quigley (13 points), Copper (12), and Courtney Vandersloot (10) were the others with double-digit scoring. Vandersloot also had a game-high eight assists. Jonquel Jones was Connecticut’s best player leading the team with 23 points and seven rebounds. Natisha Hiedeman added 14 points.

Just as the Sun did in Game 1, Chicago stole Game 3 which was the first game in Connecticut. The Sky regained homecourt advantage and took a 2-1 series lead after defeating the Sun 76-72. What was most concerning for Connecticut was that the game was played at the pace the Sun would prefer and they still ended up losing the game. Connecticut doesn’t have a high-powered offense that Chicago and Las Vegas do.

Candace Parker led the team again with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Copper added 15 points, Meesseman 13 points and six assists, and Vandersloot pitched in with 12 points, six rebounds, and five assists. Bonner led her team with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Hiedeman scored 14 points. Courtney Williams and Brionna Jones each added 12 points apiece.

The most lopsided game from either series was Game 4 between Connecticut and Chicago. In what was a win-or-go-home situation for the Sun, they rallied behind their home crowd to defeat the Chicago Sky 104-80. Connecticut outscored Chicago 58-41 in the first half and then continued to outscore the Sky in the third and fourth quarters. Three starters and three bench players scored in double figures for the Sun. Both Bonner and Williams scored 19 points to lead the team. Alyssa Thomas finished with 17 points and eight rebounds. Dijonai Carrington (12 points), Brionna Jones (11), and Odyssey Sims (10) combined for 33 points off the bench. Chicago actually had six players reach double-digit scoring but only Kahleah Copper scored more than 14 points with 16.

No one could have predicted what would take place in Game 5. The defending champions were back on their home court in the decisive game. And with just four minutes left to play the Sky held a nine-point lead. That’s when DeWanna Bonner got open under the basket and scored a layup as Kahleah Copper tried to recover and fouled her. Bonner let out an emotional scream that Copper took offense to. Copper shoved Bonner and the two players got into a scuffle. Coach James Wade ran onto the court and the referees initially called double technicals on both players that were later rescinded. This moment in the game changed the momentum. For whatever reason, Chicago couldn’t execute on offense after this taking tough shots and turning the ball over multiple times. Meanwhile, after Connecticut had scored just 14 points total in the 2nd half between the entire 3rd quarter and the first six minutes of the 4th quarter, the Sun would finish the final four minutes of the game on an 18-0 run.

Candace Parker left the court immediately after the final buzzer sounded. The Chicago crowd was completely stunned in silence. Coach James Wade took full blame during the post-game press conference saying it was the worst moment of his professional coaching career and that his major regret was not being able to help his team score a basket in the final minutes.

All five of the Sun’s players scored in double figures. Both Jonqeul Jones (15 pts/10 rebs) and Alyssa Thomas (12 pts/10 rebs) had double-doubles. Kahleah Copper led Chicago with 22 points.

The Finals Preview

An interesting fact is that last year the Phoenix Mercury upset the Las Vegas Aces to reach the WNBA Finals and the Chicago Sky upset the #1 seed Connecticut Sun to earn a trip to the finals where they would eventually win. This season both teams got their revenge as Las Vegas eliminated Phoenix in the first round and Connecticut ousted Chicago in the semifinals.

With the Sky’s loss in the semifinals, the Los Angeles Sparks remain the last WNBA team to win back-to-back championships dating back to the 2001-2002 seasons. Even though the Minnesota Lynx won four championships in seven years (2011 through 2017) they were never able to repeat as champions. The Storm won two titles in three seasons (2018 and 2020) but weren’t able to repeat in 2019 after Breanna Stewart tore her Achilles during overseas play prior to the 2019 season.

What is fun to think about is that no matter which team wins the Finals this year we will crown a brand new champion who has never won the WNBA Championship before. The Las Vegas Aces franchise will be making its third WNBA Finals appearance. The team previously named the San Antonio Stars, lost in 2008 to the Detroit Shock. They lost again in 2020 when they were also swept by the Seattle Storm. This marks the third time the Aces franchise will play in the Finals.

This is the fourth time the Connecticut Sun have made a Finals appearance going 0-3 up to this point. Their first loss was in 2004 against the Seattle Storm. They returned to the Finals again in 2005 but this time they lost to the Sacramento Monarchs. They didn’t reach the championship series again until 2019. Where they ultimately lost in the decisive Game 5 to the Washington Mystics. Most of the core players from that 2019 team are still playing with Connecticut now. They will be hungrier than ever to finally win their first championship.

During the regular season, the Aces won two out of the three games against the Sun.

Game 1: Las Vegas 89 - Connecticut 81
Game 2: Connecticut 97 - Las Vegas 90
Game 3: Las Vegas 91 - Connecticut 83

It’s important to note that these two teams haven’t played since July 17th nearly two full months ago. Also, Jonquel Jones did not play in that third game due to being in health and safety protocols. That obviously played a factor in the outcome.

The Las Vegas Aces are definitely the Vegas favorites (heh). But I do believe Connecticut can be a good challenge for them. While the Sun don’t have the same offensive firepower that Chicago or Seattle could offer they do have their own advantages. I personally believe that Connecticut’s height and depth with their front court may be best suited to try to contain A’ja Wilson from consistently going off for 30+ points and 10+ rebounds every single game. Connecticut was the best rebounding team this season in the WNBA and that could play a large factor in this series.

The key to the Aces winning the championship is to continue doing what they’ve done most of the season. If their starters continue to dominate they will likely win the WNBA Championship. It’s very difficult to stop a team that has a dominant post player (Wilson) and multiple dominant guards (Gray and Plum). Jackie Young can pick up the slack if any of their other Big 3 are struggling.

For Connecticut, they’re going to need to slow the pace down. They need to play excellent defense. The Aces’ biggest weakness is that they don’t have a ton of depth. When Seattle was able to limit two of their big four, they were able to beat Las Vegas. If a team can hold two of Wilson, Plum, Gray, or Young to around 25 points total they can beat them. The Aces generally don’t have too many other players that can step up and score 12-15 points often. Rebounding, second-chance points, and scoring in the paint will also be key for Connecticut to pull off the upset.

Prediction:

I think the most likely scenario is that the Aces are just too talented and bring too much firepower to this series to not come away with the title. Just for fun, I’ll say the Aces win in four games (3-1).

With that said, would I be surprised if Connecticut won the championship? No, not really. They have enough pieces to get the job done especially if their defense can limit Las Vegas.

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