Sports
Aces set WNBA single-season wins record with 30th victory – ESPN
Led by three players with double-doubles, the Las Vegas Aces erased a 13-point halftime deficit to defeat the Chicago Sky 94-87 Thursday night for their record-setting 30th victory of the season.
The Aces’ 30 wins are the most in a season in WNBA history, surpassing the previous mark of 29 by the 2014 Phoenix Mercury. The Aces secured their 30th win in their 34th game, which is the number of games played by the Mercury in 2014. The Aces have six games left in the regular season.
Jackie Young had 24 points and 10 rebounds, Chelsea Gray had 19 points and 10 assists and A’ja Wilson, who tied the WNBA record with 53 points in her previous game, had 18 points and 10 rebounds. Young surpassed 2,000 points for her career.
This is the second time this season the Aces have had three players with double-doubles in a game. The rest of the WNBA has done it once.
Kelsey Plum scored 14 of her 23 points in the third quarter for Las Vegas (30-4).
Marina Mabrey had 22 points for the Sky (13-21) with Elizabeth Williams adding 17 and Kahleah Copper 13. Chicago dropped two games behind the Los Angeles Sparks for the final playoff spot, allowing Las Vegas to clinch a top-two seed.
Chicago got off to a hot start and led 50-37 at halftime. Plum started the third quarter with a 3-pointer, the first of four she hit in the frame. Her fourth one, midway through, started a run that gave the Aces a 70-68 lead going into the fourth quarter.
Copper opened the fourth with a three-point play and the Sky went up by four. But Plum’s fifth triple made it 79-78 and the Aces led the rest of the way. Las Vegas finished 18-of-18 from the foul line.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
