Aces dominate Liberty in Game 2, close in on WNBA Finals sweep: Is there any hope for New York?

The Las Vegas Aces thoroughly dominated the New York Liberty, winning Game 2 104-76 on Wednesday to move within one win from sweeping the WNBA Finals. Here’s what you need to know:

Las Vegas came out of the gates hot, sprinting out to a 21-4 lead as New York limped through the opening frame, shooting just 30 percent from the field.
New York trimmed the lead to single digits by halftime thanks to strong play from Jonquel Jones, who finished with 22 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks in the game. Her star teammate Breanna Stewart struggled mightily, shooting just 6-of-17 to score 14 points.
The Aces were led by star forward A’ja Wilson, who finished with 26 points and 15 rebounds to tally her fourth double-double of the postseason. Kelsey Plum and Jackie Young joined her in scoring 20-plus points themselves, while Chelsea Gray picked up a double-double with 14 points and 11 assists.
If the Aces close out the series with a Game 3 win Sunday, they’ll become the first team to win back-to-back WNBA titles since the Los Angeles Sparks in 2001-2002.

A’ja Wilson in Game 2 of the WNBA Finals:

♠️ 26 PTS
♠️ 15 REB
♠️ 3 AST@LVAces | @_ajawilson22 pic.twitter.com/TtEtirSzHp

— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) October 12, 2023

Aces offense continues to roll

The Aces had the best offensive rating in WNBA history during the regular season, and they have absolutely looked the part during the Finals. Las Vegas blitzed the Liberty from the get-go, scoring a first-quarter Finals record of 38 points in the opening period. Thus far, New York hasn’t found a way to contain any one of the four Aces All-Stars. Young and Plum each topped 20 points for the second straight game, while Wilson led all scorers with 26. Gray recorded her fourth-ever playoff double-double (all of which have come for this franchise), and the eight points Kiah Stokes scored were icing on the cake.

Collectively, the team shot above 50 percent from the field and above 40 percent from 3-point range for the second straight night. The Liberty knew they’d have to give up something against a team so offensively gifted, but they’ve given up everything in this series. — Sabreena Merchant, women’s basketball writer

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Besides Jones, Liberty’s offense lacks answers

Jones finished the first half with a game-high 19 points and 10 rebounds, seven of which were on the offensive end of the floor. But Jones scored just three points and didn’t record a single rebound in the second half, with her teammates doing little to pick up the slack.

Removing Jones’ 12 shot attempts, New York shot just 26.6 percent from the field. Stewart had 14 points, and just six after halftime. Betnijah Laney missed her first three field goal attempts of the game and finished with 12 points on 2-of-9 shooting from deep. Courtney Vandersloot didn’t make her first field goal until the 6:11 mark of the fourth quarter. Sabrina Ionescu missed eight of her 10 attempts as well. New York’s defense was undoubtedly subpar, but its offense lacked any of the rhythm that made it the league’s best after the All-Star break. — Ben Pickman, women’s basketball writer

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Is there any hope for New York?

The Aces struggled mightily at Barclays Center this season, losing their first matchup by 38 points and trailing by as many as 17 in the fourth quarter of their second defeat. It’s one of two buildings in the WNBA that they failed to win a game in this season, and the Liberty’s best hope for making this a series is that their homecourt advantage will come through in Game 3.

New York also continued to get good production out of Marine Johannès in Game 2. Even in a 28-point defeat, the Liberty won Johannès’ minutes by one. — Merchant

Required reading

(Photo: Ian Maule / NBAE via Getty Images)