A'ja Wilson's 28-point double-double leads Las Vegas Aces past Dallas Wings
The Las Vegas Aces and Seattle Storm both move onto three-game winning streaks and lead the Western Conference, while in the East the New York Liberty and Atlanta Dream snapped losing streaks to close the gap on the Connecticut Sun
Monday 14 June 2021 15:51, UK
A'ja Wilson scored 28 points with 14 rebounds and Liz Cambage hit a huge 3-pointer late in the game as the Las Vegas Aces defeated the visiting Dallas Wings 85-78 on Sunday.
Elsewhere, the New York Liberty and Atlanta Dream ended their losing streaks, while the Seattle Storm comfortably beat the Connecticut Sun in a match-up of the WNBA's best two teams so far this season.
Dallas Wings 78 - 85 Las Vegas Aces
The Aces led by eight points early in the fourth quarter and were up 80-75 after a three-point play by Wilson with 2:17 remaining. Cambage added a pair of free throws for Las Vegas with 1:40 remaining and then hit her first basket from beyond the arc of the season 17 seconds later to cement the win.
Cambage finished with 14 points for Las Vegas. Kelsey Plum added a season-high 13 points off the bench for the Aces (8-3), which have won three straight games and captured their sixth consecutive contest against Dallas.
Satou Sabally scored a season-high 24 points for the Wings (5-6). Isabelle Harrison added 13 and Marina Mabrey scored 10 for Dallas. Arike Ogunbowale hit for 11 points, marking her 48th straight game in double-figure scoring, which leads the league and is a franchise record.
New York Liberty 85 - 83 Phoenix Mercury
Betnijah Laney collected 23 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds to lift the visiting New York Liberty to an 85-83 victory over the Phoenix Mercury on Sunday.
Laney scored 17 points in the first half to avenge her worst outing of the season in New York's previous game. She had eight points on 4-of-12 shooting in New York's 85-64 setback to the Connecticut Sun on June 5.
Jazmine Jones scored 16 points with seven rebounds off the bench for the Liberty (6-4), who rebounded after squandering a 17-point lead late in the second quarter to snap a three-game losing skid.
Sami Whitcomb had 14 points, Kylee Shook added 10 and Rebecca Allen had seven after being inserted into the starting lineup. Allen got the nod after Sabrina Ionescu sat out her first game of the season because of left ankle tendinitis.
Brittney Griner collected 29 points and 14 rebounds for her seventh double-double of the season for the Mercury (5-6), who have lost three in a row overall and five of six at home. Skylar Diggins-Smith added 25 points, however she lost control of the ball with one second left in the fourth quarter.
Phoenix's Kia Nurse struggled in her first game against her former team. She finished with nine points after making just 3 of 15 shots from the floor and missing all eight attempts from 3-point range.
Washington Mystics 78 - 101 Atlanta Dream
The Atlanta Dream's balanced scoring, led by Courtney Williams' 21 points, helped them end their four-game losing streak with a 101-78 win over the visiting Washington Mystics on Sunday.
Atlanta (5-6) snapped a six-game losing streak against the Mystics (4-6) behind their best shooting performance of the season, making 50.7 per cent from the field.
Williams made 8 of 13 shots from the field, including 4 of 6 from 3-point range, and had three steals.
Odyssey Sims had 20 points, five rebounds, four assists and four steals. Sims started at point guard in place of Chennedy Carter, who missed her fifth straight game with a strained elbow.
Tiffany Hayes finished with 18 points and six assists. Cheyenne Parker scored eight of her 11 points in the second half and finished with six rebounds.
Washington was led by Myisha Hines-Allen's 16 points and six rebounds and Ariel Atkins added 15 points and four steals. Tina Charles finished with 13 points and seven rebounds.
Seattle Storm 89 - 66 Connecticut Sun
Breanna Stewart had one of her signature performances, scoring 22 points and snatching nine rebounds while carrying the Storm to an 89-66 victory over the Sun on Sunday afternoon.
Sue Bird shot 3-of-4 from three-point range to the tune of 13 points and four assists. With her three baskets from beyond the arc, Bird tied Katie Smith for second all-time in WNBA history for three-pointers made. Stewart also hit a season-high four three-pointers.
The Storm (10-2) led by as many as 26 and dominated in most statistical categories. They found success scoring off 19 total turnovers by Connecticut (8-3). Seattle shot 48.6 percent (35 of 72) from the field and 45.5 percent (10 of 22) from 3-point range.
The Sun forced just eight turnovers and had 25 points from its bench, while the Storm forced 17 turnovers and logged 34 bench points.
The Storm didn't need a stellar performance from its second-leading scorer, Jewell Loyd, who recorded seven points in 26 minutes of play. Connecticut lost despite outrebounding Seattle, 31-28.
Dijonai Carrington scored four points and grabbed seven rebounds as a starter in the absence of the Sun's season leader in points, Jonquel Jones, who left the team to play in the Eurobasket competition for Bosnia and Herzegovina.
DeWanna Bonner and Kaila Charles led the Sun in scoring with 14 points apiece. Brionna Jones scored 12.
