PHOENIX — The Mercury rallied to overcome a 17-point deficit in Game 3 of the WNBA Finals, tying the score with a minute to play. But for the third time in as many games, Phoenix came out on the losing end.
A’ja Wilson’s last-second jump shot sealed the Las Vegas Aces’ 90-88 victory on Wednesday, leaving the Mercury on the brink of getting swept.
And yet, the look on Phoenix coach Nate Tibbetts’ face afterward was recognition, not resignation.
“It’s not a team that is just, like, figuring it out,” Tibbetts said. “They’re a well-oiled machine.”
The No. 2 seed Aces will try to close out the best-of-seven series Friday in Game 4 (8 p.m. ET, ESPN) to win their third WNBA championship.
The third-seeded Mercury looked to have momentum entering the Finals, going 5-2 in the playoffs and knocking off top-seeded Minnesota in the semifinals. The Aces, meanwhile, were pushed the distance in both of their first two postseason series. Even in Game 1 of the Finals a week ago, Las Vegas trailed Phoenix by seven early in the fourth quarter.
So, how did the Aces arrive at the chance to pull off the first WNBA Finals sweep since 2020? They’ve stayed one step ahead of the Mercury, riding a combination of coach Becky Hammon’s strategic defensive schemes, timely performances from reserves, and a trusted core trio — four-time MVP Wilson, star Jackie Young and Chelsea Gray, one of the savviest point guards in league history — in its third Finals in the past four years.
“I’m incredibly proud of them,” Hammon said of her team after Wednesday’s victory. “They’ve put a ton of work in off the court, and I think it really shows on the court.”
The path here had its bumps. For the first 2½ months of this season, the Aces hovered around .500 before an epic 16-game winning streak led them into the playoffs. On July 3, Las Vegas lost 81-54 at Indiana, a performance Hammon called “one of the worst games I’ve ever seen” and “a complete lack of professionalism.”
“I don’t really have any answers for you,” Hammon said then. “If I knew what buttons to push to make sure our effort was appropriate every night, I’d be pushing those buttons. We would have won five or six more games if we just played harder. That’s a way to flit away a season.”