Aces Go Cold from Three, Let One Slip in Indiana

It’s hard winning games when your shots aren’t falling and when your offense is stagnant. That was the story for the Las Vegas Aces in the 80-70 loss to the Indiana Fever. 

A’ja Wilson dropped 20 points, marking her 150th career 20-point game, while Jackie Young added 19, and NaLyssa Smith recorded her first double-double as an Ace with 10 points and 10 boards. But one of the defining pieces to the game was Las Vegas going ice cold from deep, hitting just 2-of-15 from three. Meanwhile, the Fever nearly burned down the nets with 11 threes on 48% shooting from behind the arc.

A Game of Missed Chances

Indiana jumped out to an early 16–8 lead, prompting Coach Becky Hammon to sub out all five starters just four minutes into the game, citing frustration with the team’s defensive effort. “I wasn't happy with the defense, so it was just a little attention grab,” Hammon said. “I think they scored six points for the rest of the quarter, so that was the goal — to buckle down defensively.”

The Aces put together a solid second quarter behind Wilson’s inside presence and went into the break up 41–35.

But the energy shifted in the third.

The Fever opened the second half on a 10–4 run, and from there, the Aces never fully recovered. Missed threes, miscommunication on defense, and lack of pace led to a 27–15 third-quarter collapse.

“We were staying in the top half of the court for most of it,” Jackie Young said postgame. “I think whenever we're playing with pace and moving the ball, that's when we're gonna get assists. But when the other team amps up their pressure, we can’t get on our heels, and I feel like we did tonight.”

Vegas, who had 20 assists in their last win against Atlanta, finished with just 12 total assists in this one.

The Shooting Struggles Continue

When asked about the team’s struggles from deep, Jackie didn’t sugarcoat it.

“At the end of the day, we need to just shoot the wide open threes that they’re giving us,” she said. “We’re hesitating. They’re short closing, daring us to shoot it — and we have great shooters on this team. Coach gives us the green light, but we’ve got to have the confidence to step in and let it fly.”

Instead, the Aces often hesitated, drove into traffic, or forced contested midrange looks, while Indiana cashed in on clean perimeter looks.

Becky Hammon: “We Gave That One Away”

After the game, Coach Hammon didn’t hold back.

“We definitely gave that one away,” she said. “It’s unfortunate, but we’ve got to move on quickly — we’ve got another one tomorrow.”

When asked about why A’ja didn’t check into the fourth quarter until the final five minutes, Hammon said it was about rest and rewarding effort.

“I thought the group that we had out there was competing. And I wanted to get A’ja some rest — we’ve got another game tomorrow.”

Hammon also acknowledged the growing postseason implications with Indiana now owning the head-to-head tiebreaker.

“We’re trying not to finish with the same record, let’s start there,” she said. “But if we do see them in the playoffs? I like my group. I like our experience. Playoffs are a different animal.”

What Becky’s Learning This Year

You can hear it in her voice, this season’s been different.

“There’s been points this season where I’ve had to be hard on them. And other times I felt like I just needed to love on them,” she said when asked about her leadership approach. “Sometimes they just need encouragement. I try to feel the pulse of the team and give them what they need — whether that’s correction, tough love, or just plain love.”

She added, “We didn’t do some of the little things that would’ve helped us close this one out. Indiana threw a good punch in the first few minutes, and that third quarter really bit us.”

By the Numbers

• Aces from 3PT: 2-for-15 (13.3%)

• Fever from 3PT: 11-for-23 (47.8%)

• Points in the Paint: Vegas 38, Indiana 32

• Turnovers: 14 each, both teams scored 15+ points off them

• Rebounds: Vegas 37, Indiana 36

• Assists: Fever 17, Aces 12

• Bench Points: 4 apiece

• Lead Changes: 11 total, with 5 ties

Milestones & Notes

• A’ja Wilson becomes the fifth player in WNBA history to notch 150+ career 20-point games.

• She passed Skylar Diggins (5,225) to move into 24th all-time in scoring with 5,228 career points.

• Wilson also moved into 6th all-time in franchise assists with 556.

• NaLyssa Smith tallied her 30th career double-double, and first as an Ace.

• The Aces were without Cheyenne Parker-Tyus, still out due to pregnancy.

Up Next

No time to dwell. Vegas heads to Minneapolis for a Friday night showdown with the 21–4 Lynx. That one tips off at 7:30 PM ET on ION and Vegas 34 at 4:40 PM PT. If the Aces want to get back in the win column, they’ll need better ball movement, more pace, and confidence behind the arc.