LAS VEGAS (July 7, 2024)—A’ja Wilson scored 28 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the Aces (13-7) past Dallas (5-17) 104-85, Sunday afternoon, establishing a new franchise scoring record in the process. Wilson now has 4,301 career points, eclipsing the former record of 4,300 held by Sophia Young-Malcolm. Also scoring in double figures were Kelsey Plum (23 points), Jackie Young (18) and Chelsea Gray (12).
Odyssey Sims scored a season-high 25 points for the Wings.
Box Score | Highlights | Photo Gallery
First Quarter Highlights (Dallas 27, Las Vegas 25)
The first quarter was a back-and-forth affair with 6 lead changes and 3 knotted scores. Arike Ogunbowale scored 9 points for the Wings and Plum led the home side with 8. The Wings, who outscored the Aces 14-8 in points in the paint, shot 55.6% from the field, while the Aces made just 39.1% of their field goal attempts.
Second Quarter Highlights (Las Vegas 51, Dallas 48)
The game remained close with neither team owning more than a 3-point advantage until the Aces went on an 11-2 run to move in front 46-40 at 2:27. Dallas closed the gap and tied it up at 48-all with less than a minute remaining. A Plum and-1 with 39 seconds left capped the first half scoring. Wilson led the Aces with 8 points and Teaira McCowan scored 7 for Dallas. The Aces hit 52.4% of their attempts from the field, including 3 of 9 from 3-point range, while Dallas made 43.5% of their shots and missed all 3 of their shots from distance.
Third Quarter Highlights (Las Vegas 77, Dallas 65)
A 9-0 Aces opening run expanded to 16-5 for a 67-53 advantage in the first 4 minutes of the second half. The Aces lead never dropped below 12 points in the remainder of the quarter. Wilson scored 8 points and Sims matched that with 8 for the Wings.
Fourth Quarter Highlights (Las Vegas 104, Dallas 85)
The Wings came within 8 points early in the final stanza, 79-71 at 8:39, but got no closer as the Aces began to pull away and never looked back. Wilson hit a pair of free throws with 4:14 remaining in the game (95-79), which gave her 4,301 career points and the franchise scoring record. Wilson scored a high of 7 in the quarter; Sims had 6 for Dallas.
KEY STATS
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The Wings committed 13 turnovers which Las Vegas flipped into 18 points, while the Aces had 9 miscues which Dallas turned into 8 points.
Las Vegas made 45.7% of its shots from the field (37-81 FGs) and the Wings shot slightly better at 46.1% (35-76 FGs). However, the Aces made 14 of 36 3-pointers, whereas the Wings went 6 of 20 from distance.
The Aces went 16 for 19 from the free throw line, while Dallas made 9 0f 13.
The Aces, whose opponents averaged 33.3 points in the paint (2nd lowest in the league) through their first 19 games, were outscored in the paint by Dallas, 46-38.
GAME NOTES
Wilson scored 28 points to surpass Sophia Young-Malcolm (4,300 points) as the franchise’s leading scorer, and now has 4,301 career points.
Wilson grabbed 10 rebounds and now has 1,854 for her career. She is in 31st place on the WNBA career rebound chart. Next up on the list is Cheryl Ford (30th, 1,907).
Wilson had 2 blocked shots and now has 396 for her career trailing Tina Charles for the 14th most in WNBA history with 397.
Gray handed out 3 assists, and now has 1,534 for her career—the 9th most in WNBA history. Cappie Pondexter is 8th on the list with 1,578.
The Aces were without the services of Kiah Stokes who was not in attendance due to a non-COVID illness.
The Aces held Arike Ogunbowale to 13 points—her 3rd lowest scoring output of the season—as well as just 13 field goal attempts—her 3nd fewest of the season.
NEXT UP
Las Vegas heads out on a 3-game, cross country road trip to Seattle (July 10), Atlanta (July 12) and Washington (July 14) this week, beginning with a 12:00 pm PT tip against the Storm. The game is being broadcast locally on the Silver Stats Sports & Entertainment Network.