WNBA Finals first look: How the Aces and Mercury match up

LAS VEGAS -- Call it the duel successful the desert. The Las Vegas Aces and Phoenix Mercury volition conscionable successful the 2025 WNBA Finals.

The franchises, located astir 300 miles apart, person some won aggregate titles but person ne'er met successful the title bid before.

The No. 2 effect Aces outlasted the No. 6 effect Indiana Fever 107-98 successful overtime Tuesday successful Game 5 of their semifinal series. Now they big the Mercury Friday successful Game 1 (8 p.m. ET, ESPN). Phoenix, the No. 4 seed, eliminated the No. 1 effect Minnesota Lynx 3-1 connected Sunday.

The Aces, led by four-time MVP A'ja Wilson, won WNBA titles successful 2022 and 2023. The Mercury's championships were successful 2007, 2009 and 2014, each with Diana Taurasi arsenic the team's star. She retired aft past season, and a retooled roster -- led by triple-double standout Alyssa Thomas -- has Phoenix backmost successful the Finals for the archetypal clip since 2021.

The WNBA Finals volition beryllium a best-of-seven format for the archetypal time, truthful this could beryllium a history-making series. Here is simply a breakdown of however the teams lucifer up.

(2) Las Vegas Aces vs. (4) Phoenix Mercury

Regular-season series: Las Vegas went 3-1 against Phoenix

June 15: Mercury 76, Aces 70 (at Las Vegas)
June 29: Aces 84, Mercury 81 (at Phoenix)
Aug. 15: Aces 86, Mercury 83 (at Phoenix)
Aug. 21: Aces 83, Mercury 61 (at Las Vegas)

How Phoenix got here

The Mercury mislaid Game 1 astatine location successful the best-of-three archetypal circular and connected the roadworthy successful the best-of-five semifinals, truthful they've proven their mettle distant from location and successful elimination games.

After a 13-point nonaccomplishment successful Game 1 of the semifinals against Minnesota, Phoenix won each of the adjacent 3 games by azygous digits, dominating successful the 4th fourth successful each. In Game 2, the Mercury overcame a 20-point shortage to necktie the grounds for largest roadworthy comeback successful WNBA playoff history. The Game 3 triumph astatine location volition astir apt beryllium remembered for the arguable last 22 seconds, but besides featured different large Mercury finish. In Game 4, Phoenix started cold, trailing by 14 successful the archetypal 4th and by 13 entering the last frame, earlier pulling retired the 86-81 victory.

How Las Vegas got here

Las Vegas was .500 astatine the All-Star interruption earlier riding a 16-game winning streak into the playoffs. That blistery streak extended to 17 with a Game 1 triumph successful the archetypal circular -- but past the Aces mislaid 3 of their adjacent six postseason games earlier Tuesday's overtime triumph clinched a spot successful the Finals. Las Vegas bushed Seattle 2-1 successful the best-of-three first-round series, past had to spell the region to destruct No. 6 Indiana successful the best-of-five semis.

On Tuesday, Wilson recorded her WNBA-record 3rd vocation 35-point crippled successful a series-clinching win. The four-time MVP besides became the archetypal subordinate with 35 points, 5 rebounds ...