The Las Vegas Aces have not been in the best shape tonight while the visiting Lynx continue with their winning streak. Cheryl Reeve’s squad got the better of the 2x WNBA champions in every quarter, only trailing in the fourth. However, what stood out was Kelsey Plum complaining about the officials for not being fair during the sideline interview after the third quarter.

While talking to Angel Gray, Kelsey Plum mentioned, “(The defense) sucked. I’m frustrated. I feel like the officiating is not equal on both ends.” Comparing the stats for tonight’s game, Las Vegas was indeed called for two more fouls than the competitors. Still, the number was 19 whistles compared to Minnesota’s 17 calls.

Consequently, the Lynx also got two more free throws. However, their shooting percentage from the stripe was better with 11 of 14 free throws going into the basket. This marked their accuracy at 78.6% from the line. In contrast, the Aces received 12 free throws but only made 8 of them. They went under 67% from the stripe. Hence, while the officiating does not exactly seem to be unjustifiable, it just might be the tough competition that got the better of Kelsey Plum.

While she did continue praising her teammate Jackie Young, who had a game-high 26 points, Plum’s remark on the referees got under the viewers’ skin.

Disappointed fans slap down Kelsey Plum for not holding the team accountable but going after the officials

The Las Vegas Aces was one of the teams to beat coming into the season. However, they have been more than poor at showing their skills. First, Chelsea Gray’s excuse was the reason for their failure. Now, for Kelsey Plum, it was the officiating crew. Since the Aces was on its threepeat mission, the fans obviously wanted more from them. While A’ja Wilson promised to hold the team accountable, even she could only manage 15 points to the total, failing to keep up.

But does any of it have anything to do with the referees? Hence, a follower mentioned how she should not have been talking about the officials when the Aces had not been playing well the whole time.

“Cry me a river, Kelsey Plum! Complaining about the refs in the middle of a game, really? Lynx have just been great so far and the Aces haven’t had plenty of lapses on defense.”

The Aces is now at a 17-10 run and have been at the fourth berth in the playoff standing for some time now. Last year, this was not the case. One fan wrote about their performance so far in the season. They even opined that the guard’s criticism of the referees is something that they expect from the team. While another simply wrote that Plum is not someone they like to watch. Perhaps because of the complaining?

“Kelsey plum complaining about the officiating is so on par for this disaster of a team lmao”

“Kelsey Plum so irritating to watch”

For long-time LA Vegas fans, this side of Plum was new too. Seemingly bringing in the chargers NBA players and coaches like Rudy Gobert or Anthony Edwards incurred for speaking against officiating or merely just gesturing, the guard was advised to be more cautious.

“Wow. Never saw Kelsey Plum this tight before. Gotta be careful on speaking on the officiating tho. The refs are just as sensitive as the refs in the #NBA. #WNBATwitter”

The Las Vegas Aces had a free throw within a minute going into the game tonight. The officials whistled Alanna Smith for a shooting foul for which A’ja Wilson received two free throws. The Aces then forced 2 more fouls on the Lynx to grab a total of four free throws in the first quarter itself. In comparison, Minnesota got three free throws while the Aces picked three fouls. The number of calls and Plum’s contrasting view did not of course sit right.

“Kelsey Plum cryin’ in the interview like they didn’t get every single call in the first quarter at LEAST. Lynx been fighting for their damn lives off fouls and not getting calls. Yeah, the officiating sucks tonight. But you’ve been the beneficiary for most of the game.”

Seems like Kelsey Plum has definitely icked a lot of the basketball fans tonight. However, the Olympic gold medalist did grab 20 points for the team in the 98-87 defeat. With this loss, the Lynx have got the better of Las Vegas twice in a row now. It remains to see if the Aces can keep the Commissioner’s Cup champions from handing them another loss in their next game in two days.

Stay tuned for more such updates and join us for the exciting second episode of the “Dual Threat Show” as our host BG12 sits down with Georgia Bulldogs star and Mountain West All-Freshman Team Selection, Asia Avinger.