The Las Vegas Aces took a commanding 2-1 lead in their best-of-five semifinal series against the Indiana Fever with an 84-72 win in Game 3 on Friday night. Las Vegas is now one win away from booking a ticket to the Finals for the third time in the last four seasons. Game 4 of this matchup is set for Sunday in Indianapolis.
The Aces jumped ahead early and were in control for much of the first half, but were unable to pull away. A few minutes before halftime, Lexie Hull and Kelse Mitchell hit three consecutive 3-pointers to get the Fever back in the game right before the break.
The Fever carried that momentum into the second half and surged ahead by as many as five in the middle of the third quarter, but that turned out to be the high point of their evening. The Aces closed the third on a 6-0 run and never trailed again. It was all Aces in the fourth quarter as they cruised down the stretch.
A’ja Wilson had another uncharacteristically inefficient outing, and was limited to 13 points on 6 of 20 from the field, though she did hit a few big shots in the second half and chipped in eight rebounds, four assists and three blocks. Jackie Young led the way for the Aces with 25 points, five rebounds and four assists, while NaLyssa Smith was great again with 16 points and four blocks.
Kelsey Mitchell tried to put the Fever on her back again, but the Aces sent multiple bodies her way all night long and limited her to 21 points on 8 of 26 from the field. Aliyah Boston also struggled from the floor and went 5 of 16 for 12 points. With those two struggling, the Fever didn’t have enough offense. As a team, they shot 35.6%.