Tag: Aces
Aces introduce their new acquisition, center Liz Cambage
Photo credit: Shawn McCullough (Sports Radio Service)
By Shawn McCullough
The Las Vegas Aces pulled off one of the biggest trades in the WNBA’s 23 year existence.
Last Thursday, the Aces traded point guard Moriah Jefferson, forward Isabelle Harrison and their 2020 first round draft pick to the Dallas Wings for center Liz Cambage.
Cambage led the WNBA in scoring last season averaging 23 points per game and also averaged 9.7 rebounds per game.
Not only does the 6-8 Australian center fill a need for a dominant presence in the paint for the Aces, but she also brings much needed leadership to a young Las Vegas team.
“Liz is perfect for our town and our team,” said head coach Bill Laimbeer. “We needed a big power player on the inside, but the most important thing about Liz is that she’s a smart basketball player. She knows the game, she knows how to involve her teammates and she brings an attitude that we don’t presently have, a toughness and an attitude of how you play basketball.”
“I am very excited to be here,” said Cambage. “Now teams can’t double-team me. What, are you going to leave A’ja [Wilson] open? Are you going to leave the girls open on the 3-point line? We have so many strengths in every area. It is so exciting.”
But despite being very happy to be in Las Vegas now, Cambage struggled on her road to Sin City.
She was drafted in 2011 at the age of 20 by the Tulsa Shock, but was very unhappy with her first year in Tulsa and with the organization.
“I was drafted to a team that I was open to not wanting to be a part of. When I came to the league, I was looking to be nurtured, I wanted to grow and I wanted to be looked after and cared for, but I was thrown in the deep end and I was just another object,” said Cambage in tears at her introductory press conference. “My first year in Tulsa, I cried on the phone every night to my mum and my agent because I just wanted to be out of there. The Tulsa Shock didn’t care and it ruined me to the point where I had to step away.”
From the day she was drafted in 2011, she only played three seasons in the WNBA (2011 and 2013 in Tulsa and 2018 in Dallas – formerly the Tulsa Shock). Outside of the WNBA, Cambage played three years for three different teams in China, averaging 30.5 points per game.
After the acquisition of Cambage, the Aces are now considered the favorites to win the 2019 WNBA championship.
Photo Gallery: Las Vegas Aces vs. Minnesota Lynx
Aces assess talent in 79-75 preseason loss to Minnesota
Photo credit: Shawn McCullough (Sports Radio Service)
By Shawn McCullough
The Las Vegas Aces have a list of number one draft picks and now have two time WNBA All-Star Center Liz Cambage, who they acquired in a trade with Dallas last week.
The first preseason game allowed Head Coach Bill Laimbeer to assess his team in a 79-75 loss to the Minnesota Lynx at Cox Pavilion on the campus of UNLV.
“We only had one preseason game, that was this one, to see where we are at and what we need to work on,” said Laimbeer. ”We need to be able to score and make shots in big times. At the end of the day, we need to learn how to win, because this franchise up to this point, doesn’t know how to win.”
Cambage arrived in Las Vegas just prior to tipoff and didn’t play, but Kayla McBride led the Aces with 18 points, while A’ja Wilson added 16 points and six rebounds.
“We have a lot of talent, a lot of number one picks,” said McBride. “I am just really excited to see when it all comes together because it is going to be dangerous. It’s going to be a lot of fun.”
2019 first overall draft pick Jackie Young made her Aces debut scoring 16 points while going 7-10 from the field.
“We know what she can do,” said Laimbeer of Jackie Young. “It’s a matter of can she do it on the big stage and I think today was a good learning experience for her and our team to understand her capabilities.”
The Aces will start the regular season this coming Sunday at 5:00 pm against the Los Angeles Sparks at the Mandalay Bay Events Center.
Las Vegas Aces – http://aces.wnba.com
Game Notes:
- Liz Cambage arrived in Las Vegas prior to tipoff and arrived courtside during pregame warmups and was greeted with hugs from both the Aces coaching staff and players.
- The Aces led at halftime 40-32.
- The Lynx made 10 three point shots to Vegas’ four.
- The Aces turned the ball over 14 times.
Game Starters:
F – 22 A’ja Wilson
F – 21 Kayla McBride
C – 8 Carolyn Swords
G – 0 Jackie Young
G – 10 Kelsey Plum
Aces eliminated from playoff contention with 107-102 loss to Dallas
Photo credit: Las Vegas Aces
By Shawn McCullough
The Aces fought through the second to the last game of the regular season, but fell short of the playoffs for the fourth straight season.
The Wings got 43 points from center Liz Cambage to beat the Aces 107-102 at the College Park Center in Dallas on Friday.
Forward A’ja Wilson led the Aces with 34 points and seven rebounds, while guard Kayla McBride added a double-double, 16 points and 12 assists.
The Aces led by six points at halftime, but Dallas battled back and later held off Las Vegas down the stretch of the game.
The Aces trail the Wings by one game for the final playoff spot with one game remaining for each team, but since Dallas beat Las Vegas all three times this season, the Wings win the tie breaker in the event the two teams end the season tied.
With the loss, the Aces fell to 14-19 on the season, still improving on an 8-26 record last season.
The Aces will finish the season on Sunday against the Atlanta Dream at the Mandalay Bay Events Center. Tipoff is scheduled for 3 pm PDT.
Las Vegas Aces – http://aces.wnba.com
Game Notes:
- A’ja Wilson scored in double figures (34) for the 31st straight game.
- The Aces shot 57.7% from the field.
- The Aces were out-rebounded 42-25.
Game Starters:
F – 22 A’ja Wilson
F – 1 Tamera Young
C – 8 Carolyn Swords
G – 21 Kayla McBride
G – 10 Kelsey Plum
Aces making final playoff push, beat Liberty 85-72
Photo credit: Shawn McCullough, Sports Radio Service
By Shawn McCullough
Playoffs were not even a thought when the Las Vegas Aces started the season 1-7 as one of the youngest teams in the WNBA.
Now, the Aces control their own destiny in making the WNBA playoffs after an 85-72 win over the New York Liberty at the Mandalay Bay Events Center on Wednesday night.
“I told them (the Aces players) at the start of the season that at the end of the season they wanted to be the team that no one wanted to play,” said head coach Bill Laimbeer. “And I think we have accomplished that goal. I think that teams don’t want to play us because we have the capability of scoring a lot of points and move up and down the floor. We’re at the point now that we have a chance (for the playoffs).”
All five of the Aces starters scored in double digits led by forward A’ja Wilson, who dropped 19 points.
The Aces jumped out quickly in the game, building a 31-10 lead after the first quarter, but the Liberty scrapped back throughout the game.
“Players know that they have to play intense for 40 minutes or you let teams back in the game and that’s what happened today,” said Laimbeer. “But at the same time, a win is a win and on to the next game which we all know the importance of, so I think we’re excited and we put ourselves in the position to have a one game shootout. It’s a big game for us so I guess we have to go win.”
With the Aces and the Dallas Wings tied for the final playoff spot with each having two games left in the regular season, the two teams play on Friday in Dallas in a must win game for the Aces.
“We want to take it one game at a time,” said guard Kayla McBride. “Obviously you know with Dallas we’re tied for 8th place with them right now, so it’s a win or go home game, like a single elimination game and we know that we are going to prepare as best we can, rest up, go to Dallas and go to work.”
If the Aces lose that game, the will be eliminated from playoff contention, due to Dallas holding the tiebreaker after beating the Aces three times in the season.
If the Aces win, Las Vegas will earn a playoff berth with either a win over Atlanta on Sunday or a Dallas loss to Seattle on Sunday.
The Aces final two regular season games:
8/17 – at Dallas
8/19 – vs Atlanta
Las Vegas Aces – http://aces.wnba.com
Game Notes:
- A’ja Wilson scored in double figures (19) in all 31 of her games so far this season.
- The Aces shot 52.2% from the field while holding New York to 43.1%.
- 7,159 Aces fans attended the game at the Mandalay Bay Events Center.
- NBA players Kyle Lowry of the Toronto Raptors and Kyle O’Quinn of the Indiana Pacers were in attendance.
Game Starters:
F – 22 A’ja Wilson
F – 1 Tamera Young
C – 8 Carolyn Swords
G – 21 Kayla McBride
G – 10 Kelsey Plum
Photo Gallery: Las Vegas Aces vs. New York Liberty
Photo Gallery: Las Vegas Aces vs. Indiana Fever
Aces see playoff hopes slipping away in 89-73 loss to Lynx
Photo credit: Shawn McCullough, Sports Radio Service
By Shawn McCullough
Things looked promising at the All-Star break for the playoff chances of the Las Vegas Aces, but after five straight losses, playoffs are now very unlikely.
The Aces lost to the Minnesota Lynx 89-73 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center.
“We really can’t hang our head down about this loss,” said forward A’ja Wilson. “We really just have to keep pushing especially when trying to make a playoff push. You really don’t know what’s going to happen. So for us to just keep reaching for our playoff goals and see that light.”
Wilson scored a team-high 18 points and pulled down six rebounds while the team’s second leading scorer this season, Kayla McBride, was held to just seven points.
The 73 points scored by the Aces was the lowest point total since an 87-71 loss to the Sparks in Los Angeles on July 1st.
“You have to win games on the road and games at home, so we can’t use that as an excuse for our lapse of tonight,” said guard Tamera Young on their struggles after the All-Star break. “We just have to be more mature and communicate and bring the intensity every single game. It’s our profession and job, it’s what we have to do.”
With the loss, the Aces fell to 12-18 on the season and are 2.5 games out of the eighth and final playoff spot, currently held by Dallas, with just four games remaining in the regular season.
The remaining schedule is as follows:
8/11 – vs Indiana
8/15 – vs New York
8/17 – at Dallas
8/19 – vs Atlanta
Las Vegas Aces – http://aces.wnba.com
Game Notes:
- A’ja Wilson scored in double figures (18) for the 30th straight game.
- The Aces were held to just 37.5% shooting from the field.
- The Aces were out-rebounded 40-30.
- 4,497 Aces fans attended the game at the Mandalay Bay Events Center.
Game Starters:
F – 22 A’ja Wilson
F – 1 Tamera Young
C – 8 Carolyn Swords
G – 21 Kayla McBride
G – 10 Kelsey Plum
Aces falter in the fourth quarter, fall to Dream 109-100
Photo credit: Las Vegas Aces
By Shawn McCullough
The Atlanta Dream scored eight of the last 10 points of the game to beat the Aces 109-100 at McCamish Pavilion.
The Aces led 84-80 after three quarters, but Atlanta outscored Las Vegas 29-16 in the fourth quarter.
Four Aces scored in double digits including a team high 20 points from point guard Kelsey Plum.
Kayla McBride dropped 19 points, while A’ja Wilson added 18.
With the loss, the Aces have now lost four straight games coming out of the All-Star Break and have now dropped 2.5 games out of a playoff spot with five games remaining in the regular season.
The Aces will next return home on Thursday night to face the Minnesota Lynx at the Mandalay Bay Events Center.
Las Vegas Aces – http://aces.wnba.com
Game Notes:
- The Aces shot 48.6% from the field and 42.9% from three point range.
- The Aces out rebounded the Dream 34-29.
- A’ja Wilson scored in double figures (18) for the 28th straight game.
- The Aces gave up a franchise high 109 points for the second straight game.
- The WNBA announced that the game between the Aces and the Mystics in Washington D.C., that was canceled due to Las Vegas travel issue, will count as a forfeit and a loss for the Aces.
Game Starters:
F – 22 A’ja Wilson
F – 1 Tamera Young
C – 8 Carolyn Swords
G – 21 Kayla McBride
G – 10 Kelsey Plum
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