LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Say this for the Aces: They know how to finish.
A clutch layup by Jackie Young as time expired forced overtime and the Aces ruled the extra period for a dramatic 110-98 victory over the host Seattle Storm on Sunday in Game 3 of the WNBA semifinals.
The victory gives the Aces a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five series. Game 4 is Tuesday in Seattle.
The end of regulation was wild, with Seattle seemingly getting clinching baskets and free throws several times.
Sue Bird’s 3-pointer from the corner with .8 seconds left put the Storm ahead 92-90. But then Young answered after a timeout, taking an inbounds pass near halfcourt and cutting past defender Ezi Magbegor for the basket that forced overtime.
From then on it was all Aces.
Storm standout Breanna Stewart made the first basket of the extra period for a 94-92 lead, then the Aces fired off a 12-2 spurt to lead 104-96 with 1:44 left.
Chelsea Gray, who scored 29 points, had two 3-pointers and a basket in the outburst, and Kelsey Plum chipped in with two baskets, including a three-point play on a drive against Stewart that gave the Aces the lead for good, 95-94 about 1:20 into the extra period.
What was the key to the Aces’ outburst?
“Just get a bucket, just get a bucket,” Aces standout A’ja Wilson said in a postgame interview. “At the end of the day, that’s what it comes down to. You got to get a bucket. We’re pros. This is what we do.”
Gray agreed, saying the Aces seemed to ratchet up their concentration when needed. “Just lock it in,” Gray said. “This is not out of the ordinary for us. We practice this stuff.”
The electric finish was a stunner to Aces coach Becky Hammon. “That was a hell of a game. I don’t know if I’ve ever been a part of something like that,” Hammon said.
Gray’s long 3-pointer from the top of the key put the Aces ahead 102-96 with two minutes left and completed a burst of seven unanswered points that included a rebound basket by Wilson and a nifty drive by Plum.
Wilson scored 34 points, her career best in the playoffs, bettering her 33 points in Game 2, and added 11 rebounds.
Gray added 12 assists, and Riquna Williams added 14 points off the bench, including a clutch 3-pointer in the wild close of regulation that helped keep the Aces within striking distance.
Plum had 16 points, including that critical three-point play in overtime.
Stewart led Seattle with 20 points, while Bird and Jewell Loyd each had 17. Tina Charles added 16 points, but she missed a pair of free throws with 7.2 seconds remining in regulation that could have given Seattle a three-point lead.
“It was really frustrating. We had the game and we gave it to them, and that’s really it,” Stewart said.
Stewart’s layup with 55 seconds left in regulation put Seattle ahead 87-85, and they held the lead until Young’s game-tying buzzer beater set the stage for overtime.