Strong second quarter propels Aces to blowout Game Two win

LAS VEGAS—Fourteen down, two more to go for the Las Vegas Aces.

On Sunday, the Aces were able to weather the early storm and eventually get a blowout victory over the Phoenix Mercury 90-76 in Game Two at Michelob ULTRA Arena.

Now holding a 2-0 lead in the Finals, the Aces now head to Phoenix for Game Three on Wednesday and Game Four on Friday, with the latter potentially being the series-closing game.

Here are some of the major takeaways coming from a game that the Aces were able to run away with.

Replaying the classics

As they have done in many Finals games before, the trio of A’ja Wilson, Jackie Young and Chelsea Gray completely took over Game Two for the Aces.

Wilson proved why she deserves to be mentioned as the best player on the planet, securing another double-double with 28 points and 15 rebounds. Gray finished with a double-double of her own with 10 points and 10 assists, while Young had the most points of any player in a single quarter in Finals history (21 in the third quarter) and finished with a game-high 32 points. The three have proven time and time again that they can win on the biggest stage, and they certainly did so again this afternoon.

Never looking back

With a little under seven minutes remaining in the second quarter, the Mercury were threatening to run away with the game with a 33-27 lead.

However, something began to click for the Aces at that stage. Suddenly, not only did the Mercury lead evaporate, but the Aces took charge with a 17-4 run for the remainder of the quarter to take a nine-point lead into halftime. They would never relinquish the lead past that point, continuing the domination in the second half to cruise to a victory.

Glass cannons

The one thing that can always be relied on is how aggressive the Aces are on the boards, and that held true in Game Two.

The Aces completely outgunned the Mercury on the boards, finishing the game with an 43-34 advantage in rebounds. Blocking was also in complete favor of the Aces with a 6-1 advantage, with Gray and Jewell Loyd combining for five. Finishing off Mercury drives with no points allowed the Aces to keep their opponent from getting back into the game.