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‘Not going to fold’: Aces stay alive, crush Liberty in Game 3 — PHOTOS

By Callie Fin Las Vegas Review-Journal
Aces guard Kelsey Plum (10) holds onto New York Liberty guard Courtney Vandersloot’s (22 ...

With her team facing elimination, coach Becky Hammon answered a pregame question about her confidence going into Game 3 of the Aces’ WNBA semifinal series against the New York Liberty by asking if anyone in the media room played poker.

“Are you gonna fold pocket aces?” she asked a reporter in the front row. The question was met with an emphatic head shake.

“We’re the Aces. We’re not going to fold,” Hammon said.

The Aces proved their coach right, beating the New York Liberty 95-81 on Friday at Michelob Ultra Arena.

It was the Aces’ first win against the Liberty this season, cutting the deficit in the best-of-five series to 2-1. Game 4 is at noon Sunday at Michelob Ultra Arena.

Jackie Young led the Aces with 24 points, Kelsey Plum had 20, and Chelsea Gray scored 10 with seven assists.

WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson had a 19-point 14-rebound double-double, while newly minted Sixth Player of the Year Tiffany Hayes added 11 points off the bench.

2023 MVP Breanna Stewart scored 19 for the Liberty.

The first half featured 18 lead changes, which is the most in any half in WNBA playoff history, per Elias Sports Bureau via ESPN.

“I thought that was probably our most complete game of the season,” Hammon said. “The game I’ve been waiting for and believing that they had.”

Here are three takeaways from the win:

1. Long awaited

Pregame, Hammon said that she was waiting for a performance where at least three of her guards are each “clicking on all cylinders,” and that’s what she got Friday.

“Shoot, we were waiting for that, too,” Gray joked after the win.

She said the Aces’ defensive intensity was the key, and that was on full display when the Liberty only scored six points in the third quarter on 14 percent shooting as the Aces pulled away by scoring 21 in the period.

The consistent defensive stops allowed for the Aces to run their “fast breaks and secondary options,” Gray added. That showed in the final box score as well, as the Aces outscored the Liberty 42-28 in the paint.

Possibly the largest area of improvement was the defense against Liberty guard Sabrina Ionsecu, who only came away with four points after going scoreless until the fourth quarter.

She had more than 20 points in each of the first two games of the series, and Hammon said previously that she was hoping the Aces could at least get a grade of C-plus guarding Ionescu. On Friday night, Hammon gave her team an A-plus.

2. Advantage Aces

The postseason home win was a record-setting one for the Aces, their 12th straight. The previous mark was shared by the Los Angeles Sparks (2001-04) and Sacramento Monarchs (2003-06).

The Liberty’s home crowd was largely involved in the first two games of the series, with famed director and longtime New York sports fan Spike Lee even talking trash to Plum from his courtside seat in Game 2.

On Friday, after Stewart called the Aces’ 16-0 run in the third quarter “ridiculous,” Liberty coach Sandy Brondello acknowledged the impact of fans in Las Vegas.

“It was loud. I mean, that’s what we had in New York,” Brondello said. “Now it was a crowd that was against us, and that’s where we probably have to huddle more and communicate a little bit more to stay together. I didn’t think we’re always on the same page, and you could see that, and (the Aces) exploited it.”

3. Foul frustration

Hammon was mostly positive, but a question about Wilson’s excellence sent her on a sidebar about the officiating.

Wilson only took two free throws in 33 minutes of action, and Hammon wasn’t happy.

“It’s ridiculous, and I’m freaking tired of it,” Hammon said.

Liberty point guard Courtney Vandersloot was called for a technical foul with a little over a minute left in the the third quarter, and she complained about the officiating as well,

“I was a little bit frustrated with the lack of calls on the other end,” she said. “But you know, that’s on me. I’ve got to be more physical.”

Brondello said both teams were allowed a pretty long leash by the referees, who called a total of 23 fouls (10 against the Liberty, 13 against the Aces).

Contact Callie Fin at clawsonfreeman@reviewjournal.com. Follow @CallieJLaw on X.

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