The Las Vegas Aces, the top overall seed, will face the third-seeded Connecticut Sun in the WNBA Finals of 2022. The former has a home-field advantage, and the opening game of the best-of-five series will be played on Sunday.
The Aces locked horns against Breanna Stewart and the Seattle Storm in the semifinals after easily defeating the Phoenix Mercury in the first round. Even though they got crushed in Game 1 of that series, they made a remarkable comeback, winning three straight games and a thrilling series. A’ja Wilson and Chelsea Gray were mercurial during the playoffs, and they are poised to go lethal against the Sun.
The Sun, on the other hand, struggled in the first round and needed to win Game 3 against the Dallas Wings on the road to advance to the semifinals. There, they took on the reigning champion Chicago Sky and fell behind 2-1 before battling back to win the series in Game 5 with an incredible comeback in the fourth quarter. They are now up against the Aces to decide the champions.
Who Got the Form?
The Aces were by far the best offensive team in the league this season thanks to new head coach Becky Hammon’s implementation of a more contemporary style. Meanwhile, when it came to pacing (98.64), 3-point percentage (36.1), and turnover percentage (14.1), they came out on top. Moreover, in league history, only the 2019 Washington Mystics had a higher offensive rating than they did, at 109.6. When their small-ball lineup is on the court, they spread the floor, play quickly, and get unstoppable.
The Sun, on the other hand, runs its business more traditionally. Their defense, tenacity, and physicality are what they pride themselves on, and their top four players are all power forwards or centers. They scored 46.2 percent of their points in the paint and had the second-best defensive rating in the league (96.3). Meanwhile, they also had the best offensive rebounding percentage (37.1) since the 2015 Atlanta Dream.
Who will Win the Game?
Given their historical offensive success and a home-court advantage, the Aces are the undisputed favorites going into this series. Ultimately, those two elements ought to demonstrate the distinction. Meanwhile, it will be worth watching how the Sun tackles the Aces.
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