WNBA semis: New York a win away from dethroning Las Vegas

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

The New York Liberty are one win away from sweeping the defending WNBA champions Las Vegas Aces after hacking out an 88-84 victory during their semifinal matchup on October 2, 2024.

After a convincing 10-point victory to draw first blood in last year’s WNBA grand finals rematch, New York had to dig deep in Game 2 after climbing back from an early first-quarter deficit.

In a surprising turn of events, the Liberty retaliated in the second and third quarters to take control of the game, but Las Vegas showed one last stand in the crucial stretch of the fourth to keep themselves within striking distance.

The biggest momentum shift for Las Vegas was when they equalized the game at 81-all, but New York’s Sabrina Ionescu responded to the challenge after hitting a clutch perimeter jumper to give them the two-point lead in the final 1:15 of the game.

A series of scoreless sequences then doomed both teams as reigning Most Valuable Player (MVP) A’ja Wilson of Las Vegas missed two crucial jumpers while Ionescu also shot a way-off trey that remained the thrilling Game 2 at 83-81.

Las Vegas had the chance to tie the game after Ionescu fouled Tiffany Hayes but the Las Vegas veteran split her attempts from the charity stripe.

On the other hand, Ionescu quickly made up for her careless foul and was sent to the free-throw line, extending New York’s advantage to 84-82.

The Liberty then capped off the close win with clutch free throws from Ionescu and Breanna Stewart, after the game referees rewarded them the ball off an out-of-bounds review call.

Ionescu continued her mastery over Las Vegas and top-scored the game with 24 big points built from 9/18 shooting from the field while Stewart added 15 markers, eight assists, and seven rebounds.

On the other hand, Las Vegas received a 24-point outing from Wilson but failed to record her first double-double of the series after only pulling seven boards in 37 minutes.

Kelsey Plum, Las Vegas’ star shooter, struggled from the field and only produced six points alongside two rebounds and a dime.

New York will look to complete their revenge tour on October 5, 2024, as they travel to Las Vegas for Game 3 of the WNBA semifinals.