Las Vegas Aces forward A’ja Wilson (22) drives on the Seattle Storm’s center Mercedes Russell (21) during WNBA Playoff game 2 at Michelob ULTRA Arena in Las Vegas on Sun Sep 22, 2024 (Las Vegas Aces photo)

By Barbara Mason

The Las Vegas Aces (0-1) had a stagnant start in the opening game of their series with the Seattle Storm (1-0). The Storm had at one time led by 11 points but the Aces surged in the second quarter and blew the game wide open in the fourth quarter going on 14-2 run.

A’Ja Wilson only had four points in the first half and finished with 21 points. Kelsey Plum had an off night with only two points, but there is little doubt that she will turn that around. Tiffany Hayes was terrific off the bench with 20 points. The Aces took game one of the WNBA Playoffs defeating the Seattle Storm 78-67.

Game recap: The opening quarter did not go well for the Aces. The Storm limited them to 11% shooting. They could not buy a bucket. Seattle outscored them in the first quarter 18-9. At one time in the second quarter the Storm had an 11 point lead before the Aces began to turn the narrative.

At the half, the Storm had a 42-38 lead but Las Vegas had made this game manageable. The Storm kept A’ja Wilson completely contained. She only had four points in the first half. The Storm were also getting a lot of second chance shots with their offensive rebounding. The Aces had their work cut out for them in the second half of this game.

With 2:58 left in the third quarter Las Vegas took a 58-57 lead. This game had been tied a lot in the second half. As the clock wore down on the third quarter, the Aces had really settled into the game and would be looking for a productive fourth quarter. A’Ja Wilson had scored 15 points in the third quarter. Kelsey Plum was struggling from downtown, a shot she usually excels at going 0-6. She only had a shocking two points.

This game was going down to the wire with some excellent defensive effort from both teams. The Storms’ Jewell Loyd was having a quiet game with only six points very unlike her. With just under five minutes left in the game, the Aces showed signs of building some increased momentum, building a lead 70-65.

With no need to panic, the Aces now had a 14-2 run demonstrating a lot of patience. With 1:30 left, Las Vegas had established a 78-67 lead which would be the final. The Aces now take a 1-0 series lead into game two.

After a slow start in the first half of this game scoring only four points, A’Ja Wilson scored 15 points in the second half of the game and she had eight rebounds really coming alive in the third quarter. Tiffany Hayes was solid with 20 points and fpur rebounds off the bench.

Chelsea Gray spearheaded the comeback effort in the first half finishing with 16 points and a couple of rebounds. Jackie Young chipped in 12 points and seven rebounds. Kelsey Plum was strangely quiet with only two points scored in the game.

The Aces really put the stops on Jewell Loyd holding her to six points. The Storm’s Skylar Diggins-Smith had the high score for Seattle with 16 points and four rebounds. The Storm had it all going in the first quarter but just could not sustain their lead against the defending champions.

Game notes: It all began Sunday night for the Aces as they took on the Storm at Michelob ULTRA Arena as their quest for a three-peat got off to a good start in earnest. Three WNBA playoff games were played Sunday with the Liberty beating the Dream 83-69, the Sun really took it to the Fever 93-69 and the Lynx with a seven point win beat the Mercury 102-95.

The Aces are heavily favored but this is the playoffs and all bets are off, anything can happen. Las Vegas were challenged with the solid play of the Storm’s Jewell Loyd who scored six points in game one and Skylar Diggins-Smith led in scoring with 16 points. None of the Aces are listed on the injury list so they were at full strength and continue peaking the way they were as the regular season came to an end.

Tuesday night’s game two will again be played at Michelob ULTRA Arena. Now that the Aces have tested the waters in this year’s post-season there is little chance that they will come out in the next game the way they did Sunday night. Kelsey Plum will turn things around and A’Ja Wilson will overcome whatever the Storm throws at her. Tipoff for game two is scheduled for 6:30 PM.