The Las Vegas Aces need a historic rebound to avoid elimination in the WNBA playoffs

NEW YORK – As the Las Vegas Aces looked for an advantage last season that could lead them to a second straight championship, a slogan found its way onto T-shirts, social media posts and eventually a parade float: Aces vs. Everybody. It served as motivation for Las Vegas. Every player and coach had a chip on their shoulder.

But on Tuesday night, after the Aces lost to the New York Liberty 88-84 — a loss that dropped Las Vegas to 0-2 in the series and to the brink of elimination — coach Becky Hammon offered another slogan: “It was Aces vs. Aces tonight. We beat ourselves.”

She also compared the Aces’ Game 2 defense to a “layup clinic.” Las Vegas was outscored 44-24, and she said the Aces were put in a hole by ill-advised fouling and other self-inflicted wounds.

Fought against it and protected the home court #SEAFOAMSZN | #LIGHTITUPNYL pic.twitter.com/aNidqedAZk

– New York Liberty (@nyliberty) October 2, 2024

Las Vegas committed three more fouls than New York and, more importantly, missed seven of its 19 free throws.

Perhaps most notably, Las Vegas became the first defending champion to trail 0-2 in a WNBA playoff series – a disadvantage no team in league history has overcome. Hammon said the Aces were facing “a war.” And a big one.”

“You can’t make mistakes. They are too hurtful,” she said. “They are too difficult to recover from when you are playing against the best team in the league. Let there be no doubt. They are the best team. They played it all year round. Just like last year.”

That was then. And that is now. The two-time reigning champion is looking for an edge.

“To be honest, we weren’t ahead,” Hammon said. “The feeling (this season) was different than when I jumped. And that’s why it’s difficult to score three goals. Let’s be honest. The whole league has been pissed off for the last eight months and my players are in commercials and this and that and you get distracted. That’s why it’s hard.”

The Liberty brought with it more contemporary challenges. Sabrina Ionescu fought through the Las Vegas defense and scored 24 points. Breanna Stewart finished the game with 15 points, eight assists and seven rebounds. The constant movement in New York also attracted a lot of attention and repeatedly led to mishaps in Las Vegas. The Aces allowed New York to score 20 points off turnovers in the first half.

“They are a team that capitalizes on their mistakes,” forward Alysha Clark said. “They are too good for us to make mistakes.”

On Tuesday morning, three-time WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson cited communication issues as part of the problem.

“Companionship is our blessing and our curse,” Wilson said. She added that Las Vegas sometimes falls into the trap of assuming where a teammate will be instead of actually announcing it.

Las Vegas wasn’t without some positives to hold on to as the series heads west. Wilson scored 18 points in the second half and finished with 24, and the Aces had several chances to take the lead with less than a minute to play.

Still, they couldn’t avoid each other. A turnover with 10.7 seconds left proved particularly costly, missing a golden opportunity to tie the series.

Hammon acknowledged that her players worked hard and had more energy than in Game 1. They also made more 3-point shots (12 in Game 2 compared to seven in Game 1), which contributed to a more competitive contest. Clark said their communication has improved, although over time they have faltered a bit in that area.

“But by and large they were the same problems,” Hammon said bluntly.

Hammon has yet to experience a losing season with the Aces. Judging by the record, it wasn’t a losing season, but one in which they didn’t win a championship.

She arrived in Las Vegas ahead of the 2022 season after serving as an NBA assistant with the San Antonio Spurs for seven years. On Tuesday, she looked back on a remarkable comeback: After heartbreakingly losing the 2013 title to the Miami Heat, the Spurs rallied together to defeat the Heat for the 2014 championship.

“(The Spurs) came back with so much enthusiasm and so much discipline. So much concentration. That there was no way they were going to beat them,” she said.

The problem for the Aces is that, in Hammon’s own analogy, they are the Heat – the team that lost, not won, in 2014. After Las Vegas’ loss in Game 1, Hammon described Game 2 as a “live or die” affair.

“Did I say it was a must to win, I lied,” she said jokingly. “I’m trying to convey the drama.”

Well, the drama is there.

“I love being in the history books, so I might as well try to start there,” said Aces guard Chelsea Gray, who played better as she went from a 4-point outing in Game 1 to a 14-point outing performance and seven assists came in Game 2.

She is a veteran and a champion. This also applies to Wilson, Clark and many other aces. “I feel like if you don’t understand what this is about on Friday, we can’t say anything,” Clark said.

Hammon stressed that when play resumes later this week, her players will need to take it quarter by quarter and, most importantly, play solid defense. But it’s hard to miss what happened in Brooklyn. A passing of the championship torch seems increasingly inevitable.

Just minutes after the final buzzer sounded, the Aces left the Barclays Center floor, where they had won just once in the last two years. As they left, a huge torch was conveniently rolled onto it, opposite New York’s bank. It was lit for the fourth time this postseason (once for each playoff win).

The flame of freedom shone. The Aces’ flame flickered.

(Photo by A’ja Wilson and Jonquel Jones: Elsa / Getty Images)