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LAS VEGAS — In a week when outside forces conspired to make the focus anything but basketball in the WNBA, the Las Vegas Aces and Phoenix Mercury put the spotlight back on the court.
Nine ties and 12 lead changes, including three in the fourth quarter, resulted in an exciting opener to the league’s first-ever seven-game series, and the higher-seeded Aces took the early 1-0 lead with an 89-86 comeback win. It’s a continuation of Las Vegas’ clutch-time prowess over Phoenix, as it was the third time this year that the Aces have beaten the Mercury by exactly three points, with previous wins of 84-81 and 86-83 during the regular season.
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Game 1 came down to Las Vegas’ speed versus Phoenix’s length. And the Aces optimized their pace and skill late by switching to a zone defense to neutralize the bigger Mercury. It solved the problems they were facing earlier in the game defensively and juiced the offense to earn the win late.
First and foremost, the Aces couldn’t keep Alyssa Thomas out of the lane. The middle pick-and-roll where a guard screens for Thomas was difficult for Las Vegas to navigate — A’ja Wilson specifically referenced how unfamiliar it is for her to go under and over screens as a big, and Thomas is a freight train to stop with a head of steam. The coaching staff decided to go zone during the second half to deny Thomas the middle of the floor.
“I was seeing them score too much against our man,” Las Vegas coach Becky Hammon said. “Them getting the ball in the paint, whether it was off the pass or penetration was really hurting us. It was putting us very vulnerable on the back side with those 3s. So just trying something different where maybe we didn’t give up the middle so easily.”
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Thomas had five points and three assists in the second half compared to 10 and six, respectively, in the first half. Phoenix was more stagnant without its floor general operating from the paint, especially in the fourth quarter. Twelve of the Mercury’s 18 field-goal attempts in the final period were 3s, too high of a ratio for a team that likes to get into the lane.
The zone also allowed for the Aces to play small. They knew that Dana Evans and her 5-foot-6 frame would be put into every single screening action, leaving Evans in uncomfortable positions against the frontcourt of Thomas, Satou Sabally and DeWanna Bonner. But the zone enabled Evans to use her quickness without getting switched onto bigger players. She aided in the Aces’ defensive effort on Thomas by digging in on her dribble, and Las Vegas turned 12 Mercury turnovers into 20 points.
“I really get going with my defense,” Evans said. “When I get steals and I push the ball, and I see something easy go in, get a layup, then I know, all right, I feel good, but I gotta let my defense dictate my offense.”
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The Aces needed to make Evans playable defensively because her offense was too valuable. While Phoenix attempted to make Evans a matchup problem on defense, the fifth-year guard proved to be the scheme-buster on the other end. When the Mercury went to their veteran lineup with Thomas, Sabally, Bonner, Kahleah Copper and Sami Whitcomb, that meant 6-4 Bonner had to defend Evans; though Bonner has 10 inches on Evans, Evans blew by her on drives, off screens, and in transition.
The defining sequence of the game was Bonner helping in the paint and losing track of Evans for a 3-pointer that put Las Vegas up 85-82. On the next play, Bonner tried to attack Evans off the dribble but couldn’t gain any separation and had to dump the ball off to Sabally late in the shot clock. The Aces took a two-possession lead their next trip down the court.
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Although Las Vegas doesn’t go to its zone often, and Wilson indicated that there hasn’t been much practice time devoted to that defense, the principles shined through as the Aces walled off the paint and forced Phoenix into a high volume of 3-pointers, many of them spot-ups instead of the preferred catch-and-shoots off of paint penetration.
“Give them credit for mixing up their defense,” Phoenix coach Nate Tibbetts said. “I thought it was a good adjustment. We didn’t handle it well.”
It’s unlikely Hammon and her coaching staff will return to the zone as frequently again; it is intended to disrupt rhythm, not survive an entire 40 minutes.
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But the zone got the job done in Game 1. The Aces kept their best players on the court and dictated the style of play, particularly down the stretch.
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
Las Vegas Aces, Phoenix Mercury, WNBA
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