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A'ja Wilson, Jackie Young Have Fans Raving as Aces Down Liberty in WNBA Finals Game 1 – Bleacher Report

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1 year ago

October 11, 2023

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The Las Vegas Aces are two wins away from a repeat after beating the New York Liberty 99-82 in Game 1 of the WNBA Finals.
More than just pitting the league’s two superteams against one another, this series was billed as a battle between A’ja Wilson and Breanna Stewart, the WNBA MVPs in each of the last two years.
Jackie Young stole the show Sunday, though, delivering a standout performance on both ends of the floor. She had 26 points on 9-of-15 shooting, including 5-of-8 from beyond the arc. The 6’0″ guard added five rebounds, four assists and three steals.
Game 1 was a continuation of Young’s transformation since entering the WNBA. Every time she has seemingly hit her ceiling, she reaches another level.
Jackie Young is balling. 😤
No matter how much is said about Jackie Young's 3-point shooting, it's not enough. She went from someone you could leave open to an elite shooter in one offseason. And then this season she said, "I think I'll get even better."
As of right now: Jackie Young = Finals MVP
Becky Hammon said pregame that there were more openings available for Jackie Young offensively … safe to say we're seeing it so far. Pretty aggressive start for her.
Jackie Young's overall improvement is insane 🔥
Jackie Young's composure is elite!! So even keel, doesn't get too hype or too frustrated. 🖤❤️‍🔥
jackie young have a game
This has been a hell of an opening game from the Aces THE ™️ Jackie Young Game A'ja has been phenomenal defensively (whole team has in the 2nd) Ball movement from the whole team has been awesome
Wilson, meanwhile, filled out the stat sheet (19 points, eight rebounds, two assists and two steals) and was a terror on defense around the basket. Her three blocks don’t tell the full story for how much she disrupted New York’s offense inside.
once again that a'ja wilson keeping her team in it while the 2023 mvp is… <a href="https://t.co/0KXdo7VCIa">pic.twitter.com/0KXdo7VCIa</a>
That A'ja Wilson block of Courtney Vandersloot 😮
A'ja got that Lefty jumper COOKIN😮‍💨
A'ja giving out blocks like Oprah, YOU GET A BLOCK! YOU GET A BLOCK! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WNBAFinals?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WNBAFinals</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AjaWilson?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AjaWilson</a> <a href="https://t.co/xFL1tJ0Hhq">pic.twitter.com/xFL1tJ0Hhq</a>
A'ja midrange one of the most unguardable shots and then secured the block on the other end!
A'ja pick and pop to the elbow is so beautiful. Every time. Put it in the textbooks.
Not to be outdone, Kelsey Plum matched Young’s 26 points. She overcome a somewhat sluggish shooting night—1-of-7 on threes—by adapting her approach and attacking the basket.
Even under the best of circumstances, depth wasn’t a luxury Las Vegas got to enjoy with such a star-laden roster. Candace Parker’s foot surgery in July meant head coach Becky Hammon would have to shrink her rotation even further once the postseason rolled around.
Until the final minutes when the outcome was decided, only six players were seeing the floor for the Aces in Game 1, with Sixth Player of the Year winner Alysha Clark logging 27 minutes off the bench.
And it still didn’t matter because Vegas’ starting five is so devastating on its own.
A'ja Wilson, Kelsey Plum, Jackie Young and Chelsea Gray have 91 combined points, the most all-time by a quartet in a WNBA Finals game. Pretty much the story of the game right there.
The Liberty presented quite the contrast in that regard.
Jonquel Jones finished with a double-double (16 points and 10 rebounds), and Breanna Stewart had a team-high 21 points, though it came on 8-of-19 shooting. But Betnijah Laney, Courtney Vandesloot and Sabrina Ionescu combined for 28 points.
Vandersloot was basically getting played off the floor.
Marine over Sloot when.
Sabrina and Sloot are just food out there for the Aces.
Sloot getting absolutely torched
no way you can play Sloot this 4Q. there's enough passing and lineup versatility to just do the other starters + Marine/KT
Stewart hasn’t been her usual self all postseason, and there’s only so much head coach Sandy Brondello can do to scheme around Vandersloot and Ionescu’s limitations on defense.
New York has too much talent to get blown out like this for three straight Finals games. But the series might be headed to a more expeditious outcome than the forecasts predicted.