WNBA Finals Game 2 live tracker: A'ja Wilson, Aces cruise in blowout to take 2-0 series lead over Liberty
The Las Vegas Aces wasted no time backing up their Game 1 win on Wednesday night.
It looked like they were trying to end the series before it even made it back to Brooklyn.
The Aces, after a dominant first quarter in which they put up 38 points, cruised to beat the New York Liberty 104-76 in Game 2 of the 2023 WNBA Finals on Wednesday night at Michelob Ultra Arena in Las Vegas. That put the Aces up 2-0 in the series as it heads back to New York for Game 3 on Sunday.
The Liberty, who fell by 17 on Sunday, got off to about the worst possible start on Wednesday night. The Aces rolled to a 38-19 lead after the first period, which marked the most points they had scored in a single quarter all season and the second-most points scored in a quarter in Finals history. The Aces opened the game on a 14-2 run, too, and shot an incredible 71% from the field in the first three minutes of the contest.
Though the Liberty cut the game back to single digits by halftime, their resurgence didn't last. The Aces opened the second half on another 12-3 run to quickly push their lead back to double digits and grab control of the game. Las Vegas held the Liberty to just 13 points in the third quarter, and rode that lead the rest of the way to the 28-point win.
A’ja Wilson led the Aces with 26 points and 15 rebounds while shooting 10-of-16 from the field. She now has 11 career playoff games with at least 20 points and 10 rebounds, which is behind only Tamika Catchings and Candace Parker in WNBA history. Wilson is also just the third player to ever have 25 points and 15 rebounds in a Finals game. Jackie Young added 24 points and eight rebounds, and Kelsey Plum finished with 23 points and eight assists. Las Vegas shot nearly 54% from the field.
Jonquel Jones was the lone bright spot for the Liberty. Jones finished with 22 points and 10 rebounds in the loss. Breanna Stewart added 14 points and 13 rebounds, and Betnijah Laney had 12 points.
