Chelsea

Gray

Gray came alive in the fourth quarter in time to give the Aces a much-needed lift on the offensive end down the stretch. In the frame, she made multiple momentum-changing three-pointers just when the home crowd seemed ready to unleash during the Mercury’s comeback attempt. She drew fouls down the stretch on both ends of the floor, as well, helping the Aces run through the tape and capture their third WNBA championship. Gray, a former Finals MVP, proved her value on both ends of the floor throughout the series and finished as one of five Aces players to score in double figures.

While Gray wasn’t super efficient scoring the basketball, she still contributed in meaningful ways. She once again used her high basketball instincts and dexterity to frustrate Alyssa Thomas and interrupt her handles. Gray also made sure to facilitate, making sure that the Aces’ two best scorers in A’ja Wilson and Jackie Young received the ball in spots where they could create offense. Gray’s poise and experience came into play late on Wednesday night when the Aces were in danger of losing the game after having a 17-point lead. With 1:26 left in regulation and the game tied, Gray came off a Wilson screen and drove into the paint with Monique Akoa Makani following her. She used her strength to haul the ball up and over and into the basket to get the and-one call.

Wilson put on an MVP-caliber of a performance on Wednesday night. Not only did she make 55 percent of her 20 shots, but she led her team in rebounding and was responsible for almost 40 percent of her team’s total rebounds. What has stood out about Wilson’s game throughout the 2025 finals hasn’t been her scoring and rebounding as those have been constants in other Finals she’s competed in. Wilson’s playmaking and decision-making skills have taken a jump during the 2025 postseason. On Wednesday she made sure to find Jackie Young and Chelsea Gray when they both had better looks than she did. But of course it was Wilson who had the last laugh and the game’s final score. After the Mercury came back to tie the game after being down as many as 17 points, Wilson made a tough turnaround jumper over the outstretched arms of Alyssa Thomas with five seconds left in regulation to win the Aces the game and go up 3-0 in the series.

The former Finals MVP put her playmaking skills on display for a second straight game against Phoenix, reaching double figures in assists and finishing with a game-high in that department. Unlike in Game 1, however, Gray found her touch as a shooter on Sunday — she shot efficiently and scored in double digits following a 2-of-7 showing from the field in her opening game. Her defensive performance was equally impressive, utilizing timing and quick hands to repeatedly poke the ball away from Mercury ballhandlers and scorers. As a result, Gray recorded a double-double, combined for six stocks, and put together a stellar two-way performance to help the Aces take a 2-0 series lead.

Loyd had arguably her best performance of the playoffs on Friday, finishing as one of the Aces’ top scorers on the evening. Hot shooting and an eight-point opening quarter marked the high of her night, although she drained a huge three-pointer in the fourth quarter while the final outcome was still up in the air. Loyd, along with Dana Evans, combined to provide Las Vegas with 39 bench points and seven threes on a night in which Jackie Young and Chelsea Gray were cold from the field. She’ll look to land another strong performance on Sunday in Game 2 of the series.

Wilson began the game not her most efficient. She went into halftime shooting 5-of-13 from the field and only scoring 14 points off those 13 shots. But a switch flipped for Wilson after halftime where she scored 13 points in the third quarter and then six more in the fourth while shooting 8-of-12 from the floor in the final quarters of the game prior to overtime. When Wilson’s shot wasn’t falling she notably made sure to find teammates for better looks. She looked for an open Megan Gustafson on both a kick out three-pointer and a high-low action. Her other three assists were to Chelsea Gray and Jackie Young. Speaking of Young, she and Wilson made history becoming the first pair of teammates in WNBA history to score at least 30 points during the same postseason game.

Young scored at all three levels on Tuesday night in addition to finding four different teammates for her 10 assists. Two of those assists were to Chelsea Gray and Jewell Loyd during the the five minute overtime period. Young found both Gray and Loyd within less than a minute of each other in the same spot near the right corner pocket. On a heavy shot diet, 20 shots to be exact, Young was still efficient hitting 50% of all of her looks. Young and her teammate A’ja Wilson made history becoming the first pair of teammates in league history with at least 30 points scored in the same postseason game.

Gray was intentional about picking her spots to take shots. She took three shots in the second quarter and made all of them. While she was less efficient during the third and fourth quarters, in overtime she played reminiscent of her 2022 and 2023 postseasons when she hit tough shots right up against the shot clock. Gray led the Aces in the five minute overtime period scoring 8 points and not missing a shot in the process. In addition to her scoring and playmaking, Gray put in a lot of defensive effort and used her quick hards to generate steals along with her natural strength to block the shots of Fever guards penetrating the paint.

After an efficient showing in the Aces’ Game 3 victory on Friday, Gray didn’t get going until hitting a few three-pointers late in Game 4. Add in the five turnovers, and the Aces’ starting point guard did not have her best day at the office. Young has reached double figures in three of the first four games of the semifinals, but her efficiency is just as crucial to her team as the point total. The Aces will need Gray to be at her best in Tuesday’s Game 5, as the loser is headed home for the rest of the season.

Young scored the majority of her points in the second quarter once the Fever defense cracked down on A’ja Wilson after she scored 11 points in the first. Almost all of Young’s field goals were assisted as she moved well off the ball and was found cutting and on kick-out three-pointers by primary ball handlers Chelsea Gray and Dana Evans. Young battled all night being guarded by Lexie Hull who while she was dealing with a back injury still made it rather difficult for Young to get free and play her game.