Mateo’s Hoop Diary: The Aces’ airtight defense crushed the Liberty in Game 3

The Aces will leave to deal another day. A’ja Wilson carried her squad to the finish line, and the defensive pressure- blitzing Sabrina Ionescu and suffocating the 3-point line- zapped the visitors in the second half. 

Wilson didn’t allow the Liberty’s protection to put a lid on her game early. She came out converting a pick-and-pop jumper, assaulting the rim and splashing a top-of-the-key tray. 

On the other side, Breanna Stewart rattled off three consecutive baskets. And Jones burst into the paint from the top to the cup for a layup and downed a corner triple. 

In frame two, Plum added seven digits, pulling up in the corner and maneuvering to the hole twice. Wilson disrupted two close-range attempts for Stewart and scored on a gorgeous feed from Chelsea Gray on a pick-and-roll set, plus logged a bucket from the dunker spot. 

At halftime, the Aces were up 52-49. Additionally, the squad had 20 paint points, nine on the break, seven on extra tries, three off turnovers and eight from the bench.

The Liberty accumulated 18 interior marks, eight in the open court, six via second chances, two off turnovers and 16 from the reserves.  Ionescu was held scoreless on four attempts.

Then the hosts crushed the guests, making them play mostly from the outside and forced seven turnovers. Only two of 14 field goals were allowed in the third quarter. Alysha Clark bothered Stewart’s jumper on time on the perimeter and in the post. The defense closed in quickly on offensive rebounds. And the passing lanes were as secure as Fort Knox.

The contributions on offense were overkill. Plum followed up with two trifectas and dribbled left by Leonie Fiebich from the top to the cup for a layup. And Wilson nailed a step-back jumper over Jonquel Jones plus spun out of a post up at the elbow for a catch and score under the rim. 

The fourth quarter started with the champs ahead 73-55.

Yet the rest of the match was a formality as no Liberty player logged more than six minutes.

The Aces won 95-81. The team picked up 42 paint points, eight on the break, 12 via second chances, 13 off turnovers and 17 from the bench. 

Wilson had 19 points on eight of 14 attempts, with 14 rebounds, three assists, one block and three giveaways. Young put up 24 marks on 56% accuracy, with six rebounds, four assists and one turnover. And Plum dropped 20 points on seven of 11 makes, with one steal and one turnover. 

The Liberty finished with 28 interior digits, 13 in the open court, 12 on spare tries, six off turnovers and 21 from the reserves. 

Stewart had 19 points on seven of 17 shots, with six boards and one dime. Nobody else took more than eight looks. Ionescu scored four points on one of seven attempts, with five rebounds, five assists and five giveaways. Jones totaled 11 points 50% accuracy, with six rebounds, one assist, one block and two turnovers. And Fiebich had 10 points on four of eight makes, with four rebounds and two assists.

Wilson handled the on-court interview. She said, “We got to sustain this. This is just one game…”

The series is 2-1 in favor of the Liberty. No team in WNBA history has come back in a series after losing the first two.