Associated Press
LAS VEGAS — A’ja Wilson had 33 points and 12 rebounds to help the Las Vegas Aces beat the Seattle Storm 78-73 in Game 2 of the semifinals Wednesday night and even the WNBA playoff series.
Chelsea Gray finished with 19 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists for the Aces, while Kelsey Plum added 18 points.
Game 3 is Sunday in Seattle.
Wilson rebounded from a disappointing Game 1 loss when she didn’t reach double-figures in scoring by taking over in the second half of Game 2. With the game tied heading into the third quarter she scored 13 points in the period to help the Aces take a 60-52 lead.
“At end of the day we knew what we had to do. We had to take care of home,” Wilson said. “We should have lost by more in Game 1. We went back to film room and got into the lab.”
Seattle battled back behind Breanna Stewart, who led the Storm with 32 points and seven rebounds. The Storm got within 75-73 on Sue Bird’s runner in the lane that she banked in with 19.9 seconds left.
Wilson hit two free throws 2 seconds later and Seattle didn’t threaten after that.
“I was just locked in. Had to be locked in for my team,” Wilson said. “Can’t be like who I was before.”
The Aces came out of the chute an entirely different team than the one that looked stagnant in the first quarter of Game 1, taking a 14-11 lead midway through. But after making 7 of 13 to start the game, the Aces missed their last five shots in the quarter. The Storm, however, used a 10-0 run to close the period and took a 23-16 lead into the second.
The second quarter quickly turned into a battle of MVP candidates, as Stewart scored Seattle’s first six points of the second quarter, while Wilson scored eight of Las Vegas’ first 13. The Aces used an 11-2 run to tie the game at 31. The teams went into halftime knotted at 36.
TIP INS
The Aces missed five free throws, marking just the second time in nine games they missed three or more from the free-throw line. … Wilson’s tally marked the first time she hit the 30-point plateau since June 11 in Los Angeles. … After averaging 14 points against Washington in the opening round, Sue Bird is averaging a mere 4.0 points per game vs. the Aces. Bird is also averaging 9.0 assists per game in the series, and 7.5 for the playoffs. … Seattle had won the last 13 playoff games that Stewart played in before the loss Wednesday night.
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