Aces fall flat; lacked 'urgency' vs. surging Fever

LAS VEGAS -- On a time that started successful solemnisation arsenic superstar A'ja Wilson was awarded her 4th WNBA MVP trophy, the Indiana Fever sent Las Vegas Aces fans heading for the exits earlier the last buzzer.

The No. 6 effect Fever took down the No. 2 effect Aces 89-73 successful Game 1 of their best-of-five semifinal series, handing the two-time champs conscionable their 2nd nonaccomplishment successful the past 20 games and stealing a coveted triumph connected Las Vegas' location floor.

Indiana closed arsenic 8.5-point underdogs astatine ESPN Bet, making Sunday's result tied for the largest playoff dispersed upset successful the WNBA semifinals oregon aboriginal since 2017.

The Aces' 16-point shortage Sunday was their largest successful immoderate crippled since their 53-point nonaccomplishment to the Lynx connected Aug. 2, the crippled that preceded their franchise-record 17-game triumph streak.

It was besides the team's largest location playoff nonaccomplishment since Game 2 of the 2021 WNBA semifinals and largest nonaccomplishment successful immoderate playoff crippled since Game 3 of the 2022 WNBA Finals.

"They played with a greater consciousness of urgency," Aces manager Becky Hammon said. "We couldn't drawback up with their pace."

The Fever were led by their ain MVP campaigner successful Kelsey Mitchell. The prima defender tallied 34 points, the astir successful a WNBA semifinals debut successful league past and the second-most successful a playoff crippled successful Fever history.

"Clearly we had nary reply for Mitchell," Hammon said. "She made each freaking shot, it seemed like... she had a blistery nighttime and we fto her get going."

Indiana mostly controlled the crippled opening successful the archetypal quarter, thriving disconnected pushing the gait and beating the Aces backmost successful transition. While Mitchell was the caput of the snake, the Fever besides got large contributions from Odyssey Sims (17 points) and Natasha Howard (12 points, 11 rebounds), yet shooting 50% from the tract compared to Las Vegas' 41%.

"We wanted to travel successful and beryllium the aggressor close away," Fever manager Stephanie White said, "to marque definite that we were dictating connected the antiaircraft end, and we were dictating from a gait standpoint."

Added Las Vegas' Jackie Young: "We didn't truly person a pep to us, similar the gait that they were playing at, the pep that they had successful their step, we conscionable didn't person that today. It's connected america to alteration that adjacent game."

Though the Aces pulled wrong 3 precocious successful the 3rd period, Indiana responded with a 13-0 tally that efficaciously decided the game. The Fever yet led for 33 minutes connected the afternoon, including for the full 2nd half.

Indiana, who's down prima Caitlin Clark and 5 others owed to injury, has present won three-straight playoff games, including 2 portion facing elimination successful the archetypal circular and six of their past seven, continuing its unexpected postseason run.

"Our radical was just, it was unbelievable," said Mitchell, who finished 12 from 23 from the tract and 4 for 6 from 3. "We were resilient. They went connected a tally astatine the extremity of the [first] quarter, and I deliberation that was large for america due to the fact that we didn't fold. At immoderate fixed time, we tin and we won't, truthful I'm arrogant of our group."

Mitchell's large night, which included a timely 3-pointer astatine the extremity of the 3rd to enactment Indiana up 14 and guarantee the momentum heading into the last frame, marked the astir memorable show yet successful her superb postseason. Her 104 points these playoffs are the astir implicit a four-game span successful franchise playoff history.