Aces must make history to keep three-peat hopes alive

The Aces' pursuit of three consecutive WNBA titles suffered a big jolt Tuesday night as they conceded a 2-0 series lead to the Liberty in the playoff semifinals.

No team has ever overcome a 2-0 deficit since the WNBA initiated the best-of-five series format in 2005. The only franchise that came close was the Mercury, who forced a Game 5 against the Storm in the 2018 semifinals before going down in the winner-takes-all tie to Sue Bird's Storm.

That said, the A'ja Wilson-led Aces might be the one team with the pedigree and experience to rewrite the history books. After Tuesday's loss, head coach Becky Hammon explained why she was unwilling to count out her players.

"Nothing has been won tonight," Hammon said. "Do we have an uphill battle? Absolutely we do. There's no doubt about that. However, all New York did was do what New York should do, which is defend their home court. It's a series and we fully intend on pushing it [to] five games. We got to take it quarter by quarter and just be solid, especially on the defensive end."

The Hall of Famer rued the easy layups given to the Liberty's scorers in the first two games and challenged her players to step up defensively in Game 3. She also explained why the last team to three-peat was the Shaquille O'Neal- and Kobe Bryant-led Lakers in the early 2000s.

"This is why three-peating is hard. Let's be real," Hammon stressed. "The whole league has been p— off for the last eight months, and my players are in commercials, and this and that, and being freaking celebrities. You get distracted....There's a reason why it hasn't been done since Kobe and Shaq in any sports league. Unless the Chiefs do it again." 

One of Hammon's key players, Chelsea Gray, is eager to be part of a group that creates history. In her news conference, the veteran guard said she "loves being in the history books" and that she and her teammates weren't willing to go home yet. 

The Aces find themselves on the brink of elimination after entering the 2024 season as prohibitive favorites to win their third consecutive title. Las Vegas is trying to become the first franchise to win three in a row since the Houston Comets captured the first four WNBA titles between 1997 and 2000.