Las Vegas Aces guard Chelsea Gray (12) knocks the ball out of the hand of New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu (22) during game 4 of the WNBA Playoffs at Barclay Center in Brooklyn on Sun Oct 6, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Barbara Mason

There will be no three-peat for the Las Vegas Aces (1-3) in this year’s post-season. They fought hard through three quarters of basketball trailing by a single basket for much of the game but came unglued in the fourth quarter.

The New York Liberty (3-1) poured it on in the final quarter winning the game 76-62 a testament of why they are the best team in the WNBA. They were unstoppable in the fourth quarter. The bright spot for the Aces was the three time MVP A’ja Wilson who has done what no players has ever done in the WNBA.

There will be a new champion this season. It all starts at Barclay Center Thursday night with the Liberty taking on the winner of the Lynx/Sun matchup who played on Sunday.

Game recap: The start from Sabrina Ionescu will be monumental and she delivered in the opening quarter. With under three minutes left in the first quarter she had already scored 12 points.

This came as no surprise after her lackluster performance in game three. She is a huge part of this offense and you will rarely see a game where she fails to score at all through three quarters. She came out with a vengeance in the opening quarter finishing with the 12 points.

The Liberty began to take a measurable lead in the quarter leading by as much as eight points but the Aces came roaring back after New York went on a 10-0 run to start the quarter. After the first ten minutes of play the Liberty had a 23-19 lead. Despite the slow start, the Aces had made up for lost ground.

Mid-way through the second quarter, this game began to go sideways for the Aces. Las Vegas only had one turnover but they had begun to miss shots and the Liberty were driving the paint successfully making layups. New York took a 37-27 lead at 5:41.

Las Vegas had a fight on their hands and they were already over the limit with a half a quarter remaining until halftime. With under four minutes left in the half, the Aces were chipping away at New York’s lead in a crazy physical game trailing by two points 39-37 with a minute and a half left in the second quarter. At 1:08 left in the half the Aces trailed by a single point 39-38.

At the half New York had a 41-38 lead and Las Vegas had put the stops on Ionescu who did not score a single point in the second quarter. The Aces would need a lot more of that in the second half. This game would be won on defense.

The only Las Vegas player with double digits was Kelsey Plum with 12 and A’ja Wilson was on the cusp with nine points and five rebounds. The team would need a big second half from Jackie Young. Las Vegas only had two turnovers in the first half which was outstanding especially against a team with the defense that New York has. The heart and determination of this team led by A’ja Wilson and Chelsea Gray makes Las Vegas a very dangerous team; this game was absolutely still up for grabs.

The New York Liberty had both Breanna Stewart and Ionescu in double digits. Stewart with 15 points and Ionescu with 12. This game had been all New York however, the Aces only trailed by a basket.

A wild third quarter got underway and while the Aces were close they did trail most of the quarter 51-49 with under a minutes left on the clock. As the clock ran out Jackie Young hit a three giving the Aces their first lead of the second half but it was determined that the clock ran out prior to Young’s shot.

Las Vegas still trailed but it was by a single basket 53-51 going into the fourth quarter. The Las Vegas defense continued to contain Ionescu only allowing her three points in the third quarter. Plum did not score for Las Vegas either in the third.

New York began to extend their slim lead as the fourth quarter got underway taking a 57-51 lead. This was not the way Las Vegas wanted to start the final quarter of this game. The Liberty had out-rebounded the Aces almost 2 to 1.

New York had 39 rebounds and the Aces 21. There was still a lot of time left on the clock but Las Vegas needed to tighten up their defense and get their offense back on track. It just did not happen. Chelsea Gray had five fouls and Jonquel Jones and Leonie Fiebich had four fouls apiece for the Liberty.

New York set the pace in the fourth quarter while the Aces were struggling offensively trailing 64-53, the Liberty’s largest lead of the game. An Aces time-out was called with 5:45 left in the game.

Jackie Young continued to struggle unable to hit any thing in the fourth quarter and the Aces were running out of time. The Las Vegas was 1 of 11 in the fourth quarter with four minutes left in the game. The Aces lost this game in the fourth quarter with the Liberty outscoring them 23-11 in a blow-out. The final was 76-62. There would be a new champion crowned this year.

Game notes: Sunday afternoon the Aces met the Liberty in game four of their series getting knocked out the 3-1. Las Vegas failed to play unblemished basketball and couldn’t keep their three peat hopes alive. The Aces will saw a more determined group in game four, and the Aces made mistakes against New York in game four.

The Aces needed to protect the ball the way they did in game three but the Liberty were able to take crucial shots and the Aces had trouble on defense. They needed the defense they had in game 3 and they didn’t get solid offense on Sunday. This was far more a difficult game to control than it was last Friday night although the first half of that game was close throughout. It sure was a battle. No team had come back after trailing 0-2 in a series.

Las Vegas had a miserable fourth quarter after playing so close in the first three quarters. Their offense fell apart and the Liberty took full advantage offensively and defensively. The Aces could not hit a thing in the fourth quarter and as the clock ran out their dreams of a three peat also ran out. Regardless, they had an amazing season after a very slow start and they have a lot to be proud of.

10-0 New York run