There hasn't been too many Aces games this season that felt like the one on Sunday. The two-time defending champions dominated in a wire to wire 97-79 win over the Mercury in Phoenix, and A'ja Wilson was even more dominant than usual. If you can believe that.
Wilson finished with 41 points and 16 rebounds, 15 and 7 of which came in the first quarter alone. For whatever MVP debate WNBA talking heads have been trying to push, they got A’ja’s response.
With this 40-point outing, her second in three games, Wilson tied with Diana Taurasi and Breanna Stewart for the most such games in WNBA history with four. Again, two of those by Wilson happened this week.
"I'm honestly just so grateful that the preparation that I put in in the off-season is coming to fruition. That's what I'm very proud of. I mean, the points and then the rebounds are going to come. They're going to go too. But am I doing what I need to do to help my teammates get a win? That's my biggest thing. How can I be productive on both sides of the basketball?"
In addition to tying the career 40-point games mark, Wilson also became the first player in WNBA history with a 40-point, 17+ rebound game. In turn, she joined Candace Parker as the only players in WNBA history to even notch a 40-point, 15-rebound game.
"I'm trying to boot Candace out of these record books," Wilson said. "No, no, no. I mean, Candace is everywhere, man. I feel like I see her like every time you're in something, it's like last person, Candace Parker. And when you're talking about greatness, that's Candace in my eyes.
"When I see my name up there alongside hers, I feel like I'm on the right path."
Outside of Wilson's dominance, it seemingly all came together for the Aces. Jackie Young came back and finished with a double-double, Kelsey Plum had a timely scoring night, and Tip Hayes filled a diverse stat sheet off the bench.
Young added 13 points and 11 assists, while Plum added 16 points. Hayes chipped in 11 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals while being a team high +21 in +/-.
Speaking of Young's impact in her return from Friday's DNP, coach Becky Hammon said: "One thing that we always talk about is Chelsea's mind for the game. Jackie doesn't talk as much, but she is crazy smart. Chelsea or Jackie, whoever has the ball, you feel really good about their mind and their feel for the game.
"And Jackie's probably an underrated passer. I think you saw that tonight on a night where maybe she didn't feel she had that burst, because she had sat out and didn't maybe feel that rhythm offensively. She just dissected people with the pass."
The only thing missing was a Chelsea Gray no-look assist for the highlight reel. Gray was shaken up in the second quarter before briefly returning, but she was ruled out to start the second half with what the team called a back issue.
The Mercury were plagued by misfortune throughout, seeing their three of their four best players receive technical fouls for arguing what they thought were bad calls. Diana Taurasi and Natasha Cloud each received their seventh technical of the season, which means they’ll be suspended for the Mercury’s next game. Kahleah Cooper received her sixth.
The win keeps the Aces a game ahead of Seattle for the four seed, a matchup that would pit them against each other in the first round. With a month to play, Seattle sits three games ahead of Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever, while the Aces are five games behind the Lynx for the three seed.
All that is to say, Seattle is the playoff matchup the Aces will have to prepare for.
Angel Reese and the Sky are in town on Tuesday night as the Aces return home to Michelob Ultra Arena. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. and the game will be televised on NBATV.