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The 2023 WNBA Finals was thought to be a slugfest between two elite squads that would potentially go for the entire length of the series. However, the defending champion Las Vegas Aces are up 2-0 in their best-of-five series against the New York Liberty after a lopsided win on Wednesday (October 11).
Led by A’Ja Wilson, who notched a double-double with 26 points and 15 rebounds, the Aces routed the Liberty 104-76 despite hope that New York’s star players would likely bounce back from the Game 1 loss on Sunday (October 8). As it stands, the Aces are one game away from repeating as the WNBA champions and would be the first team since the 2001-02 Los Angeles Sparks to win back-to-back titles.

Aces head coach Becky Hammon expressed admiration for her team’s execution and play in toppling the Liberty with relative ease.
“The character of this team and their absolute buy-in to the person to the left or right’s success is authentic,’ Hammon said in a postgame press conference as reported by the Associated Press. “And it’s tough to deal with when you share the ball and people are skilled and competitive. They were good tonight. They don’t leave me speechless very often, but they executed defensively, offensively shared it – everything we’ve been asking them to do.”
Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello congratulated the Aces on their win.
“Vegas is playing their best basketball at the moment,” Sandy Brondello said. “They’re playing with a lot of confidence, you see the chemistry that they have. And for us, we haven’t taken the steps forward, we haven’t shown it. We’re disappointed, very disappointed, because we’re a way better team [than] what we showed.”
Game 3 of the WNBA Finals heads back to New York on Sunday (October 15) with the Liberty hoping to extend the series and snatch back momentum. To do so, the team will need more heavy lifting from stars Jonquel Jones, Sabrina Ionescu, and Breanna Stewart.
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Photo: Ethan Miller / Getty

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The WNBA Finals kicked off Sunday (October 8) between the Las Vegas Aces and the New York Liberty in Las Vegas, Nev. with the home team showing off their champion form as they defend their title in this best-of-five series. While the first half was competitive and saw the Liberty up by a handful, the Aces turned things around in the second.
Coached by Becky Hammon, the Aces, led by guards Kelsey Plum, Jackie Young, and Chelsea Gray, the Aces came out the gate slow but managed to keep the scoring of Liberty stars Sabrina Ionescu and Courtney Vandersloot under their usual output.

The play from the Aces trio stood out as the Liberty used much of their energy attempting to contain Aces power forward A’Ja Wilson, who scored 19 points and hauled in 8 boards, allowing Young to go off for 26 points. Young played hard all 94 feet and hindered the usually productive Ionescu from a scoring explosion. Plum also scored 26, and Gray had 20 points with a team-leading 9 assists.
On the other side of the ball, Breanna Stewart scored 21 with 9 rebounds, while Jonquel Jones had a double-double of 16 points and 10. Ionescu scored 7 points with 5 rebounds and 5 assists.
Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello, leading the team back to its first WNBA Finals appearance since 2002, stressed in the postgame press conference that her players will have to adjust to the swarming defense of the Aces and reminded the reporters in tow that this isn’t typical New York basketball.
“We can obviously learn a lot from this and we can play better,” Brondello said. “That’s what we have to remember. We haven’t lost two in a row all season long, and we’re going to know that we responded the right way. I trust these players.”
Because of the two marquee teams, the WNBA Finals attracted plenty of star power with LeBron James, Sheryl Swoopes, Mark Wahlberg, and Aces minority owner, Tom Brady all in attendance among others. The Brooklyn Nets also had several players in attendance such as Ben Simmons and Mikal Bridges, proving that women’s basketball is growing in popularity in the States.
Game 2 of the WNBA Finals kicks off on Wednesday, October 11 in Las Vegas. The series returns to New York on October 15.
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Photo: Getty