The Las Vegas Aces were defeated 87-77 in Game 1 of the semifinals by the New York Liberty on Sunday. It was a difficult game for Las Vegas as they struggled to build momentum on the road. Breanna Stewart and the Liberty are in a quality position. However, A'ja Wilson and the Aces may be able to still win the series.
Las Vegas did not play their best game on Sunday. With that being said, they played well enough to maintain realistic optimism. Here are three reasons why the Aces can still win the series.
1. Aces can compete in the paint
The Liberty did win the points in the paint battle, but not by much. New York recorded 42 points in the paint while Las Vegas had 38. Meanwhile, the Liberty finished with 11 second chance points compared to the Aces' seven.
Those are not eye-opening differentials. The Aces clearly have what it takes to compete with the Liberty near the basket. Of course, A'ja Wilson is often unstoppable in the paint which only helps matters for Las Vegas.
2. Aces won the turnover battle
Teams that win the turnover battle often win games. That was not the case on Sunday, but it could be the case soon if Las Vegas continues to take care of the ball.
The Aces were the best in the league at limiting turnovers in 2024. In Game 1 of the semifinals, they had only 10 turnovers compared to the Liberty's 14. Limiting turnovers is especially important in postseason games since momentum can change quite fast.
It should also be noted that the Liberty only had three more assists than the Aces with a 22-19 margin. Both teams had positive assist-turnover ratios, but Las Vegas' was especially impressive.
3. Will the Aces continue to struggle from beyond the arc at an alarming rate?
The Aces shot an abysmal 28 percent from three-point range on Sunday. The Liberty shot 42.1 percent, however. One has to imagine that Las Vegas will turn things around in Game 2.
The Aces finished the 2024 regular season with the fourth best three-point percentage (35.5 percent) in the league. In fact, the Aces finished ahead of the Liberty in the statistic, as New York recorded a 34.9 team three-point shooting percentage which was good for fifth in the WNBA.
Slumps do occur. With that being said, the Aces should be able to increase their three-point shooting next game. They lost by 10 points in Game 1, but a better three-point shooting performance will lead to Las Vegas making things far more competitive.