\n
\nUNCASVILLE, Connecticut: Chelsea Gray scored 20 points to lead the Las Vegas Aces to their first WNBA title in a 78-71 road win over the Connecticut Sun in Game 4 on Sunday.<\/p>\n
\nGray went 9 of 13 from the floor, and was named MVP after averaging 18 points over the run. The Aces improved to 4-0 in this year\u2019s playoffs with two days rest.<\/p>\n
\nRiquna Williams added 17 points Kelsey Plum added 16 points for the Aces, Jackie Young had 13 and league MVP A\u2019ja Wilson added 11 points to go with 14 rebounds.<\/p>\n
\nVegas finished on an 8-0 run. As the buzzer sounded Wilson grabbed the ball and stomped the floor before being mobbed by her teammates.<\/p>\n
\nWe champs! We champs! We champs!\u201d Wilson screamed at teammates as they pulled on their championship hats and T-shirts before the trophy ceremony.<\/p>\n
\nIt\u2019s the first major pro sports title for a team from Las Vegas, and Wilson surely hopes this is just the beginning.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cYou see it. You see it,\u201d Wilson said in the on-court celebration. \u201cThis is what we\u2019re building. This is what we\u2019re doing. This is it. I\u2019m so happy right now.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nCourtney Williams had 17 points to lead Connecticut and Alyssa Thomas had her second straight triple-double with 11 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds. Jonquel Jones added 13 points and DeWanna Bonner had 12.<\/p>\n
\nLas Vegas led by two points at the half and four points after three quarters.<\/p>\n
\nFor Aces coach Becky Hammon, who didn\u2019t get a title in her standout WNBA career, the ring completed a decades-long quest. She left an assistant coach position with Gregg Popovich and the San Antonio Spurs to take over in Las Vegas, and the move paid off.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cThey\u2019re unbelievable on the court but they\u2019re unbelievable humans, first and foremost,\u201d Hammon said. \u201cThey care about each other. They invest in each other. It\u2019s been an absolute honor to be their coach. I saw excellence and I wanted to be a part of it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nHammon also paid tribute to former Aces coach Bill Laimbeer, who was on the floor for the ceremony. \u201cHe put this team together and saw the pieces,\u201d Hammon said.<\/p>\n
\nAces owner Mark Davis, who also owns the NFL\u2019s Las Vegas Raiders, wasn\u2019t with his football team Sunday. He was in Connecticut to get a trophy. He hoisted it, then turned it over to gleeful players who did the same.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cLas Vegas, we are world champions,\u201d Davis said.<\/p>\n
\nIt was a six-point lead in the fourth when Kelsey Plum was called for a flagrant foul after running into Bonner while the Sun guard was attempting a 3-pointer and sending her to the floor holding her right ankle. Bonner hit all three free throws before Jonquel Jones short jumper cut the lead to a point. The Sun then tied the game at 67 on free throw by Courtney Williams and took a 71-70 lead on two fouls shots from Brionna Jones.<\/p>\n
\nBut Las Vegas had the answers.<\/p>\n
\nRiquna Williams 3-pointer put the Aces back on top and Chelsea Gray\u2019s step-back jumper extended the lead back to 75-71 with under a minute left A\u2019Ja Wilson then stole a pass and Plum hit a short jump shot to secure the win.<\/p>\n
\nBonner opened the scoring with a leaner from the left wing. But Kelsey Plum\u2019s 3-pointer from the left baseline sparked an early 12-0 run for Vegas that shot them out to a 16-6 lead. The Aces, who gave up 34 points to the Sun in in first quarter of Game 3, led 16-12 after 10 minutes on Sunday.<\/p>\n
\nGray \u2014 who overcame some serious injuries that threatened to sidetrack her career in the past \u2014 was WNBA Finals MVP, to no one\u2019s surprise after averaging 18.3 points and 6 assists in the series.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cMy teammates are awesome,\u201d Gray said as she broke into tears. \u201cI worked so hard for this.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nShe wasn\u2019t a WNBA All-Star this season, nor was she a first-team all-league pick, and voiced her displeasure about that.<\/p>\n
\nIn the end, she also got the last word.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cThey can keep that All-Star and first team,\u201d Gray said. \u201cI got the ring.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nSCRAPPY GAME<\/strong><\/p>\n\nAs expected, it was a physical game appropriately played on an NFL Sunday. The Sun got a scare when Bonner took an inadvertent elbow to the gut from Gray late in the first quarter and and was on the floor for a few minutes before being helped to the bench. She came back into the game later in the half, apparently suffering no ill effects. Natisha Hiedeman and Plum got into a short pushing match in the second quarter, eliciting technical fouls on both players. That was all before Plum\u2019s flagrant in the fourth.<\/p>\n
\nINCLUSIVE ORGANIZATIONS<\/strong><\/p>\n\nBefore the game, both coaches reflected on the makeup of organizations in the Final. The Aces are led by Hammon and two Black women executives in general manager Nikki Williams and Nikki Fargas, president of business operations. The Sun are owned by the Mohegan Tribe, have a woman president in Jen Rizzotti and are coached by Curt Miller, a gay man.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cWomen\u2019s basketball is such a story in terms of diversity and inclusion. I mean, our our league defines it and I\u2019m so proud to be a part of it, Miller said, adding that he hopes to be an inspiration to any gay child \u201cwondering if they can chase a career in sports.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nHammon said she believes the diversity in her team\u2019s front office has made it stronger<\/p>\n
\n\u201cYou can make a lot better picture with a box full of crayons than just a pencil,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n
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