LAS VEGAS — The Las Vegas Aces rallied in the fourth quarter to pull off an 89-86 victory over the Phoenix Mercury in Game 1 of the WNBA Finals on Friday at Michelob Ultra Arena.
Dana Evans scored 21 points including five 3-pointers and Jewell Loyd 18 points off the bench to spark the Aces. MVP A’ja Wilson added 21 points and 10 rebounds.
‘It was just a really great time for our bench to come up and have a big game,’ Aces coach Becky Hammon said. ‘I think you saw a little fatigue. That’s what makes us a difficult team because we do have potential for someone else to come up and get 20.
‘They were timely today. My goodness. Our bench was huge.’
The Mercury had five players score in double figures. Kahleah Copper had 21 points, but scored 19 of those in the first half. Alyssa Thomas had 15 points, 10 reobounds and nine assists.
‘We looked at some clips at halftime and made the appropriate adjustments,’ Hammon said. ‘… Really, attention to detail on those two players (Thomas and Copper) who were really hurting us.
‘You try to take away the easy ones, make the adjustments you can do in real time.’
Wilson said defense was the key in closing the gap in the fourth quarter. Las Vegas outscored Phoenix 22-15 in the final 10 minutes.
‘It was multiple times and situations where we understood our defense has to win the baskerball game,’ Wilson said. ‘We can’t go basket for basket with this team they’re too good. Think we just started to string defensive stops together.’
The WNBA Finals continue with Game 2 on Sunday (3 p.m. ET, ABC) at Michelob Ultra Arena.
Winners
Aces guard Dana Evans from 3
Aces guard Dana Evans was the unlikely hero of Game 1 of the WNBA Finals. Evans finished with 21 points in 26 minutes off the bench and knocked down five 3-pointers, tying the record for the most 3-pointers off the bench in a WNBA Finals game. Evans also contributed four steals, three assists and two rebound and injected pace into the game, using her defense to fuel her offense.
“I got some early steals. I got to the basket. I saw the ball going in and I just kept being aggressive,’” said Evans, who added four steals, three assists and two rebounds.
Aces head coach Becky Hammon said Evans is simply “a problem” for opposing defenses, leading Hammon to nickname Evans “Gears, because I like her to get to different gears.”
Aces guard Jewell Loyd off the bench
The Aces have the luxury of having a two-time WNBA champion, two-time Olympic gold medalist and WNBA scoring leader coming off the bench. Jewell Loyd had struggled this postseason, averaging 5.4 points in the Aces’ five-game semifinal win over the Indiana Fever, shooting a dismal 26.9% from the field. But Loyd had a major impact in Game 1 of the WNBA Finals with 18 points and four rebounds. “Jewell (Loyd) came out in the first half and gave us a really good punch,” Hammon said.
Aces bench
The Aces’ one-two punch of A’ja Wilson and Jackie Young carried Las Vegas to the WNBA Finals with a combined 67-point performance in their Game 5 overtime win over the Indiana Fever. That was only three days ago and the effects still lingered on Friday. “I think you saw a little bit of fatigue from Jackie (Young) and A’ja (Wilson),” Hammon said. But the Aces’ bench came in clutch and lifted Las Vegas to a win. Hammon said the game plan was for Young and Chelsea Gray to get Loyd and Evans going early and to “get them as many looks” as possible, adding, “We have weapons and we want to use them all.”
Best-of-seven WNBA Finals
Buckle up everyone. If Game 1 is any indication, the up to six remaining games in the league’s first best-of-seven WNBA Finals are going to be a treat. No team led by more than nine points in Game 1, which featured 12 lead changes and nine ties alone between the Aces and Mercury. Basketball fans are the real winners.
Losers
Alyssa Thomas missing last FTs for Mercury
In Game 1 of Phoenix’s first round series against the New York Liberty, Thomas missed a would-be game-winning layup that could have ended the game in regulation. The Mercury went on to lose in overtime. In Game 1 of the WNBA Finals, Thomas had the opportunity to step to the line and hit one shot to tie the game and both to go ahead. Unfortunately, she missed both free throws. If you are wondering if Thomas might need encouragement after such a gut-wrenching moment, she doesn’t. ‘Nah, [she’s] good,” Mercury guard Kahleah Copper said flatly postgame.
Phoenix’s meltdown
The second half wasn’t kind to the Mercury. The turnovers started stacking up (six in the second half, 14 for the game) and Las Vegas capitalized. The Aces turned those turnovers into 20 points. What’s more, Phoenix has been the playoffs’ best fourth quarter team, but the Aces who won that period Friday. Vegas outscored Phoenix 22-15 with the game on the line.
Mercury’s bench
If Phoenix wants to win Game 2, they will need more from their bench. The Mercury had 16 points to the Aces’ 41 bench points. Head coach Nate Tibbetts only used three players of the bench. Sami Whitcomb and DeWanna Bonner got most of the minutes from the trio with 20-plus each. “Our bench has been really good too in these playoffs. Their bench outplayed ours tonight, but our bench has won us a lot of games in these playoffs,” Tibbetts said postgame.
WNBA officiating
The league’s referees have been the subject of so much news surrounding the WNBA during the season and into the playoffs. The WNBA Finals was no different. The officiating crew seemingly missed several calls that infuriated the crowd. Chats of “refs you suck” rang out at Michelob Ultra Arena multiple times throughout Game 1. Also, players began stacking up fouls for what felt like, at times, minimal contact. That led to frustration from both teams. Eventually, Mercury forward Satou Sabally was completely over some of the calls. She earned a technical foul after she threw down a ball in disgust when she was called for her fifth foul. When asked postgame about what she could do to not be in foul trouble going forward, she simply replied, “Just keep my hands up.”
Mercury’s Game 1 loss
Phoenix has lost every Game 1 this postseason. Before now, it hasn’t mattered as much. The Mercury went on to close out both series against the Liberty and the Minnesota Lynx. Still, it’s hard not to wonder if it will eventually catch up to them on the biggest stage. The Finals is not an arena where teams can afford to lose games they controlled for roughly 75% of the matchup. Late-game execution will matter the longer this series goes, and Phoenix can’t afford to go back to Mortgage Matchup Center down 0-2 against Las Vegas if they want a shot at winning it all.