With star player and MVP, A’ja Wilson, still out, the Las Vegas Aces have had to step it up a bit to overcome the vacuum on their roster.
Keeping the Caliber of Play High
Even without their star player, the team reminded everyone tonight that they are still playoff contenders with a 98-90 victory over Chicago Sky. For most of the July 3rd match-up at T-Mobile Arena, Vegas looked comfortable and connected with each other against Chicago, picking up free throws left and right.
NaLyssa Smith (29 points, 8 rebounds) and Jewell Loyd (19 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists) put in work for the Aces tonight. Though they still struggle with locking down games in the fourth quarter, Vegas went into overdrive in overtime to stop the Sky in their tracks.
The crowd was hype and armed with signs that cleverly turned into hand fans; energy that was needed especially at the end of regulation. Players have said time and again that they feed off the crowd’s energy and the Aces fandom provided that and more.
Strong Start, but a Struggle in the Second Half
The Aces came out firing in the first half, grabbing an early 10-point lead before Chicago fought right back to tie it up. Vegas found their groove again in the second quarter, shutting things down with an 8-0 run to head into halftime up 49-37.
The second half was a completely stressful rollercoaster. Chicago chip-chipped away at the lead in the third, and then went on a massive fourth-quarter run to take their very first lead of the night. With just over 20 seconds left, Chelsea Gray (18 points, a game-high 6 assists) hit a clutch jumper to tie it at 86 and send the game into overtime.
In the extra period, a huge overturned call on an offensive foul stopped Chicago’s momentum cold. The Aces took full advantage, closing things out on a 10-0 run to secure a 98-90 win. Despite shooting a season-low 18.2% from three-point land, Las Vegas managed to survive a gritty Sky comeback and secured another home win.
Stepping Up in Wilson’s Absence
At the postgame press conference, when asked about her mindset and stepping up as a scorer with Wilson out of the lineup, Smith joked that she “had my A’Twos on” to “make me A’ja Wilson.” On a more serious note, Smith emphasized that “it’s anybody’s night any given night,” explaining that her approach was simply to try to “do something with it every single time” she got the ball. She credited her guards for handling heavy pressure and blitzes to get the ball down low, allowing her to focus on “just being there to score the ball.”
When asked about becoming the ninth player in WNBA history to hit 700 career 3-pointers, Loyd admitted she was completely unaware of the milestone, but that it’s a “pretty cool” achievement. She credited her longevity in the league for putting her in a position to reach it and quickly redirected the praise to her teammates. Grateful for their support on the court, Loyd added, “So thanks to everyone who passed me the ball,” as it is a collective team effort.
Smith seemed in a very good, humorous mood, which tracks because she balled out this game. If the team had lost this game, most pundits and fans would’ve understood despite the disappointment, because the team lacked their best player. But being able to win without her has to come with a special kind of high. Smith said, “We always want to have A’ja on the floor. It makes all of our lives easier. It’s unfortunate that she went down, but [we’re] just trying to be effective any way we can collectively, to help our team get the win. I think that’s just our main focus.”
The Las Vegas Aces will stay at T-Mobile Arena for the next match-up against Indiana Fever on July 5, 2026 at 4 p.m. PST.
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