After Game 2 of the WNBA quarterfinal series between the Fever and the Aces, Las Vegas coach Becky Hammon said she would largely depend on pedigree and experience to pull out the series-winning Game 3 in Vegas.
No wonder she was so confident:
The Aces’ Big Three – Chelse Gray, Jackie Young and soon-to-be five-time MVP A’ja Wilson combined to have played in 169 WNBA playoff games. The Fevers’ Big Three – Caitlin Clark (4) , Kelsey Mitchell (11) and Aliyah Boston (13) – played in 28 WNBA Playoff Games.
The result in Game 3, a 94-83 Aces victory over the Fever, was not the least bit surprising. Pedigree matters. Experience matters. And mostly, Wilson, the best player in the league, matters, finishing with 36 points and 10 rebounds.
As disappointing as the outcome was, especially for a Fever team that established itself the highest scoring team in WNBA history, it was something of a fait accompli.
Listen, the Fever are not yet ready to make a championship run just yet. Sure, they reached Game 5 of the WNBA semis last year, pushing the Aces to five games with an injury-riddled roster, but experience matters. And let’s be honest: The Aces’ Big Three badly outplayed the Fevers’ Big Three in Game 1 and 3. In Game 3, Clark shot 6-for-18 (3 for 12 on 3’s) and scored 18 points while Mitchell had 23 points on 7-of-23 shooting and 3-of-11 on 3’s. Clark also had six turnovers and just four assists, an un-Clark-like stat line. The Fever also couldn’t guard without fouling, the Aces going 28 of 35 from the line while the Fever was 14 of 20.
It’s going to happen for the Fever. If they continue to build around the Big Three – or the Big Two; Kelsey Mitchell is going to be a free agent, and we have no idea just now what her plans are – their window of championship contention is wide open. But this was an unusual year, very top heavy, where a team like the Fever can go 28-16 and still finish with the sixth seed and lose out on home court. (They also blew some home games during the regular season, most recently to Washington.) That’s got to be the goal next year, earning home-court advantage in the first round and perhaps beyond.
Now, we have to ask, what about Wilson and her ugly act during Game 2 when he stepped up on a fan standing who took one small step toward Wilson, pointed at her and said, “That’s on you,” referring to a foul committed by Sophie Cunningham?
Should the league have suspended her, or any of the Aces players who came off the bench, for Game 3? By the letter of the law, probably. But sometimes you have to use common sense in the adjudication of these matters, and let’s face it, the league would have taken major grief for putting Clark in a more favorable position to win Game 3. Favoritism, they would have howled.
I’d have fined Wilson and some of the Aces players who sprinted from the bench to the baseline, but no more of that. This wasn’t he Malice at the Palace, for crying out loud.
Bottom line, if I’m a Fever fan, I’m not feeling like I got the short end of the stick.
To be the best, you’ve got to beat the best.ge
The Aces have won the WNBA title three times in four years, including last year. And now, with the Minnesota Lynx having been eliminated in a sweep by the New York Liberty, the Aces are the odds-on favorites to win the whole thing.
The Fever? They have to improve their defensive commitment (they need better defensive players), they need more size and they need to retain a Big Three, whether that’s keeping Mitchell or adding free agents like Minnesota’s Napheesa Collier or the Aces’ Jackie Young.
A first-round elimination is surely a deep disapointment but given the opponent and the difference in experience and pedigree, it was no great surprise. Not really.
Statistically speaking - I agree with you 100%. However, the big elephant in the room across the league is the horrible, inconsistent, and dare I say, non-objective officiating? Granted, the Aces - Fever series has become a huge rivalry which is great for the Fever (and the Aces), but let's be honest about how consistently, blatantly, obviously in-your-face HORRIBLE that WNBA officiating is and continues to be. I'm not blaming the loss on the officials, but I, like any true long-term fan is DONE with the current state of the league's officials and using the Indiana Fever as it's proverbial punching bag. Lexi Hull was thrown around like a rag doll last night and despite her thin stature, she is tough as nails. I never really thought Wilson received a "special whistle" till this series and it came up ACES (pardon the pun). I believe every Fever player that played last night - at some point landed on the floor - knocked down on their back, or cast aside like an empty Gatorade bottle. Yes, basketball is a very physical game, but it's up to the leagure, and the new Commissioner to make new rules, educate and train referees better, and for them to also be held accountable for consistent bad officiating. The off season will be interesting to say the least between trades, retirement, free agency, injuries, etc. Maybe the new Commish can hire the FIBA referees for training/education. Mad respect for these young women their tenacity, their passion and their commitment to fighting till the end. See you next season! #GoFever #FeverBeliever #NowYouKnow
I understand and I'm glad they made it to game 3. Still a disappointing ending. What a season for Kelsey Mitchell!