FSM Essential Recap: Aces vs Sky - Game 28

FSM Essential Recap: Aces vs. Sky – Game 28

Franchise Sports Media

Las Vegas Aces (20-8) | Chicago Sky (15-14)

 

 

The shorthanded Aces faced the Chicago Sky for the second time in the past few days, but were unable to repeat their Thursday night result. Las Vegas fell 92-84 in the windy city.

 

RECAP:

Sunday’s offensive start matched Thursday night’s game as both the Sky and the Aces converted on two of its first three shots. A’ja Wilson and Riquna Williams followed suit and provided the scoring early on for Las Vegas while Allie Quigley and Diamond DeShields powered Chicago to a 17-11 advantage. Kelsey Plum entered from the bench and gave the Aces some additional scoring to stay within striking distance of the hot-shooting Sky, who assisted on 12 of their 13 first-quarter field goals. At the quarter’s conclusion, Stefanie Dolson put in a high-arcing three to put Chicago up 32-24. 

After a Chicago miss, Plum pushed in transition and found a sprinting A’ja Wilson for a transition layup to open the second quarter for a transition layup. Ji-Su Park followed with a crafty paint finish over Candace Parker, which trimmed their deficit to three points. Parker responded, though, and began putting the ball in the basket — triggering a 10-2 run Chicago run that saw them increase their lead to double digits. Bill Laimbeer would burn a timeout to stop the bleeding momentarily. Jackie Young found her way out of the timeout after being held in check during the first quarter. Her three field goals during the stretch erased the once 12-point Chicago lead and cut it to three. However,  a quarter-closing 5-0 run from the Sky gave them a 54-46 edge at the break.

With just six points at the break, Wilson matched that total in the opening minutes of the third quarter — scoring out of the post, mid-post, and free throw line. Her seventh and eighth points of the half evened the score at 61. Both teams started to get careless with the ball midway through the quarter, and the game turned sloppy until Candace Parker lead a beautiful fastbreak that ended in a Kahleah Copper layup. One gorgeous pass deserved another, which is what happened when Jackie Young turned the corner off of a pick-and-roll and hit Kiah Stokes under the rim for a lefty lay-in.

Neither team had much going on offense to begin the final frame, as it became a slow-paced game. Chelsea Gray and Diamond DeShields exchanged threes before Allie Quigley nailed one of her own — boosting Chicago’s lead to eight. Suddenly, a track meet broke out and the intensity raised. DeShields and Plum, most notably, raced up and down in transition, executing all of their energy to earn tough points for their teams. Riquna Williams sunk a deep two-pointer to keep the game within striking distance, but the Aces went cold from that point on. Chicago would take advantage of the free throws line down the stretch, as they earned a 92-84 win in their rematch.

 

 

 

POSITIVES:

Turnovers –  The Aces recorded just six turnovers on Sunday, which were by far their fewest in recent memory. Only a few of those were actually unforced, too — a good indication that Las Vegas was locked in and focused throughout this game. 

AND 1!!! pic.twitter.com/ppU6TvwmJ8

— Las Vegas Aces (@LVAces) September 5, 2021

 

NEGATIVES:

Fatigue – A lot of responsibility was placed upon the star players of Las Vegas as they played their second-straight game without Dearica Hamby and Liz Cambage. Unfortunately, tired legs appeared to have played a factor in the outcome here. A’ja Wilson left many shots short, Chelsea Gray was more passive than usual, and Jackie Young was quiet for most of the game. Kelsey Plum was her usual self, but she too ran out of gas in the final few minutes of the game.

 

The Aces return to Michelob Ultra Arena for an important game against the Minnesota Lynx on Wednesday, September 8th. Follow the action live on ESPN2 at 6:00 p.m. PST, and remember to check back for the next recap.

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