The Las Vegas Aces captured their second straight WNBA title on Wednesday, rallying to beat the New York Liberty 70-69 in Game 4. Here’s what you need to know:
- After trailing 39-30 at halftime, Las Vegas roared back to outscore New York 23-12 in the third quarter. Liberty responded in the fourth, but Courtney Vandersloot’s potential game-winner fell short in the final seconds.
- Aces star forward A’ja Wilson led all scorers with 24 points and 16 rebounds en route to 2023 WNBA Finals MVP honors, while guard Jackie Young added 16 points.
- Las Vegas is the first team to win back-to-back WNBA titles since the Los Angeles Sparks in 2001-2002.
- The Aces closed out the series 3-1 despite being without starters Chelsea Gray and Kiah Stokes, both sidelined for Game 4 with leg injuries.
BACK-TO-BACK TITLES 🏆🏆
The @LVAces win the 2023 WNBA Championship. pic.twitter.com/rCsw1yhNrE
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) October 19, 2023
The Aces formed the Liberty frontcourt
New York entered this series with the regular-season MVP and had its most dominant player in the first three games in Jonquel Jones. Neither player had an effective performance in Game 4. Breanna Stewart shot 3-of-17 from the field and missed a huge open 3-pointer in her team’s 68-64 loss that could have changed the tenor of the last minute.
Meanwhile, Wilson effectively kept Jones off the scoresheet — New York barely got him the ball, and when Jones got the ball inside, the defensive player of the year stopped him. — Sabreena Merchant, WNBA writer
A disappointing end to New York’s season
Vandersloot took the final shot of the 2023 WNBA Finals — an airball, giving the Aces a 70-69 win in Game 4. Although the Barclays Center crowd gave the team a standing ovation as they left, no one acknowledgments from the Liberty players as they retreated to the locker room. New York shot just 36.1 from the field, with Stewart and Jones combining to shoot just 6-of-25 from the field and score just 16 points. A sub-par third quarter hurt them again.
It was a stunning end to the Liberty season, and a sudden one — an end that came to a Las Vegas team that had lost two of its top six players. — Ben Pickman, WNBA writer
DEEP
The Liberty squandered their WNBA championship dreams, despite doing so to knock off the Aces
Championship-clinching game
It was the last defensive play from the Aces that sealed the deal.
🎥 @WNBA | #WNBAFinals pic.twitter.com/j5QOVRrCOV
— The Athletic WBB (@TheAthleticWBB) October 19, 2023
Required reading
(Photo: Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
