Las Vegas Aces Clinch a WNBA Playoff Berth
In an exciting match, the Las Vegas Aces managed to secure their place in the WNBA playoffs after defeating the Chicago Sky with a score of 79-74.
Jackie Young led the attack with 22 points and seven assists, while A’ja Wilson contributed 18 points and nine rebounds.
This victory marks the eleventh consecutive for Las Vegas (25-14), becoming the second team to secure a postseason spot this season.
Chelsea Gray had 14 points and seven assists, and NaLyssa Smith added 10 points for the Aces.
Ariel Atkins stood out for Chicago (9-28) with 30 points, her season-high, and Kamilla Cardoso scored 19 points and 10 rebounds. Angel Reese added 10 points and 17 rebounds, achieving her twentieth double-double of the season, leading the league in this statistic.
Additionally, Reese surpassed Tina Charles (45) on the list of most double-doubles in a player’s first two seasons in WNBA history.
Young was key in the first half, scoring the last 12 points for Las Vegas, including a three-pointer in the final seconds, for a score of 44-32. He finished the first half with 20 points, with an impressive 8 of 10 in field goals.
In the fourth quarter, Reese scored a quick basket that gave Chicago a 74-73 lead, their first since the start of the game.
Gray responded with a three-pointer to give Las Vegas the lead back (76-74), followed by a shot from Wilson that extended the lead to four points.
During halftime, Chicago honored Candace Parker by retiring her number 3 jersey at Wintrust Arena, next to the 2021 championship banner that Parker helped win. Parker also had her jersey retired in Los Angeles, where she won a championship in 2016.
Parker is the second WNBA player to have her number retired by two different teams. Lindsay Whalen also had her jersey retired by Connecticut and Minnesota.
