The closer the 2025 WNBA postseason, the scarier A’ja Wilson and the Las Vegas Aces look. On Monday, the Aces crushed the Chicago Sky at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, 80-66.
The Sky were simply not on the level of Las Vegas, and it truly looked that way on the floor, especially with Chicago missing the services of second-year forward Angel Reese. The former LSU Tigers star was serving a team-slapped suspension in the first half of the Las Vegas game before getting ruled out for the rest of the contest because of a back issue.
But even if the Sky had Reese playing for the entire 40 minutes, the result likely wouldn’t have been any different. The Aces are just playing too great a basketball to lose to a team that’s already out of playoff contention and had the second-fewest wins this season entering Monday.
The Aces are out to reclaim the throne they vacated in 2024 when they fell short of reaching the WNBA Finals. Before that, they won back-to-back WNBA championships, and are looking like they’re a team ready for a deep playoff run, given how incredible they have played of late.
Las Vegas started the 2025 season shaky, losing seven of its first 12 games. The Aces were at .500 after losing to the Minnesota Lynx on Aug. 3, but they have not dropped a game since, going undefeated in their next 14 outings. Over the same stretch, the Aces have posted a 113.3 offensive rating — the best in the entire league in that span. On the other end of the floor, the Aces recorded a 99.8 defensive rating during that period — fourth-best in the WNBA.
The anchor of the success the Aces are having is none other than A’ja Wilson, who has been playing at an extremely high level this season. The three-time WNBA Most Valuable Player is averaging 23.8 points while shooting 50.5 percent from the floor, 10.1 rebounds, 2.2 blocks and 1.6 steals per contest.
The win over Chicago improved the Aces’ record to 28-14 and secured them a home court advantage in the quarterfinal round of the WNBA playoffs.
Another game, another milestone for Wilson
Against the Sky, Wilson put up 31 points on 12-for-20 shooting with 11 rebounds, four steals and three blocks in 32 minutes. Such a performance will always get attention, but Las Vegas can be forgiven if it feels so customary to the team. In fact, she just set a new WNBA record.
“A’ja Wilson scored 31 points vs. the Chicago Sky, making it her 13th 30+ point game this season. Wilson now passes Jewell Loyd and Maya Moore (12) to have the most 30+ point games in a WNBA season,” shared the WNBA Communications department via a post on X, formerly Twitter.
