The return of A’ja Wilson inspired the Aces to a convincing win over the Fire
At a time when the Las Vegas Aces are currently bringing in reinforcements and changing the rest of their roster, they have decided now is the time to bring back the most powerful weapon in their arsenal.
The decision paid off for the Aces on Thursday, as A’ja Wilson played a key role with another 30-point double-double to lead his team to an 88-80 road win over the Portland Fire.
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“It was a really good 38 minutes,” Aces coach Becky Hammon said. “It’s very disturbing. Just getting close to what it needs to look like in four quarters.”
The return of the Queen
Wilson picked up where he left off, proving why he’s about to win an unprecedented fifth MVP award.
The Aces went back to the tried and true strategy of feeding Wilson, and it worked like a charm. The All-Star starter scored a game-high 32 points, and pulled down 10 rebounds. Wilson also had three assists, two blocks and two steals, establishing himself as the same force he was before his injury.
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“I was testing my ankle, I saw if it was ready to roll,” said Wilson. “I always felt like I was ready for the last few games, but the medical staff said otherwise. I just knew I had to be aggressive and take what defense was giving me.”
All-Star Special
Not to be outdone by his teammates, Jackie Young showed why he deserves an All-Star nod himself.
Young put up 19 points in the contest, more than any other Portland player, on a successful 8-for-11 from the floor (3-of-5 from three-point range). He would continue to show off his distribution chops, dishing out a game-high 11 assists to give himself a double-double alongside Wilson. The Aces are a tough team to beat when both All-Stars are firing on all cylinders, and the Fire simply have no answers.
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“You know Jack is going to have the ball a lot for us. We need the ball in his hands a lot,” Hammon said of Young’s playmaking ability. “He was just making decisions tonight going into the paint. He had layups, he had sprays. That slowed down his game offensively, and he went down a little bit there in the second half, taking advantage of the points.”
Fighting Fire With Fire
While Wilson and Young led the offense, the Aces were helped by some inconsistencies from the expansion Fire.
The Aces were able to take advantage of the Fire’s sloppy play with 13 steals; Young and Chelsea Gray each had three tackles, while Wilson, NaLyssa Smith and Jewell Loyd each added two. The Fire also shot 34.4 percent from the three-point line, and leading scorer Carla Leite (13 points) did so on an ineffective 2-for-6 from the floor. The struggle from the Fire to settle the Aces allowed the defending champions to grab an early goal and keep their opponents on level terms throughout the night, not allowing them to get involved once.
“I think defense is something we’ve been focusing on since the beginning of the year,” said Smith. “It’s something we focus on and we go out and try to take advantage of every opportunity we get.”
