Aces struggle recently against teams with winning records

With five games remaining and a playoff berth already clinched, the Aces’ identity is set. They love to push the ball in transition, can play defense when motivated and rely on their starting five to do a majority of the scoring.

However, another trend has emerged, which may hinder the Aces as they pursue the franchise’s first championship. They are 4-6 against teams with winning records, which makes them 18-3 against teams with losing records.

“I don’t think it gets in our head,” veteran point guard and 2016 WNBA champion Chelsea Gray said. “We respect every opponent whether they have a losing record or a winning record.”

The next stop on the Aces’ road trip comes at 5 p.m. Thursday against the Dallas Wings at the College Park Center in Arlington, Texas.

Tuesday’s 83-73 loss to the Washington Mystics means the Aces are 1-5 in their past six WNBA games against winning teams.

This record doesn’t include the team’s July 26 Commissioner’s Cup Final win against the Chicago Sky, as that game isn’t counted as part of the Aces’ official record this season.

But it’s also worth noting the team’s lone win in that stretch came July 17 against a Connecticut Sun team missing reigning WNBA MVP Jonquel Jones.

The Aces (22-9) are one of the five teams in the league with a winning record, along with the Sky, Mystics, Sun and Seattle Storm. Each contender has beaten coach Becky Hammon’s squad at least once.

The Mystics have caused them the most headaches, securing a season sweep Tuesday. Hammon and Gray both credited Washington’s defense-first approach for troubling the Aces.

Washington isn’t the only contender with a vaunted defense, though. Entering Wednesday, the Mystics ranked first in the WNBA in opponent points per game, while the Storm were second, the Sun third and the Sky fourth. The Aces ranked eighth.

Hammon isn’t worried about the Aces’ recent struggles. She is focused on reinforcing good habits like ball movement and player movement, something they lacked against the Mystics Tuesday.

The Aces’ coach said Tuesday’s defeat had a playoff atmosphere. She thinks experiencing that type of environment will remind the Aces what it’s going to take to achieve their goals in the postseason.

“We’ve got to figure out how to play through that and figure out how to be successful when the game gets like that,” she said.

They get a few more chances to play contenders before the regular season ends. Two of the Aces’ remaining games are against the Storm, and they get to welcome the Sky to Michelob Ultra Arena in the penultimate game of the season.

“We want to continue to press on the gas to play our best basketball toward our last half of the season,” Hammon said.

Contact reporter Andy Yamashita at ayamashita@reviewjournal.com. Follow @ANYamashita on Twitter.