Las Vegas Aces continue to be dominant. Limiting the Seattle Storm to 2 points in the final quarter of game 1 was a pleasant outcome. Even more, rallying for an 83-76 win in game 2, to stand toe-to-toe with the New York Liberty for the semifinals. However, taking on No. 1 Liberty won’t be easy for the No. 4-seeded Aces, and even the Aces admit that.

In a post-match conference, Plum responded, “New York is a lot better than they were last year, plain and simple… if you go down the line, pound for pound, individually, all of them are better,” when asked about the upcoming game. But she’s not the only one agreeing with Liberty’s dominance. Even Hammon nodded in agreement. “They’ve been the best team all year,” she added.

And they’re right. Liberty’s entire 12-player roster is impressive beyond words, leading to a lineup filled with star talent.

Their roster features scoring leader Leonie Fiebich, who averages 21 points per game. Next up is 2024 Olympic gold medalist Breanna Stewart, leading in both rebounds (11) and blocks (3) in the postseason. However, the standout among all is today’s history maker, Sabrina Ionescu. In a game against the Dream, the former Oregon Ducks star hit an impressive 36 points, shooting 5 of 11 from three-point range.

With her 45.5% shooting accuracy, Ionescu tied with Maya Moore for the three-point record. She now stands alongside Moore with a record of 16 playoff games with at least one three-pointer. Restricting a phenom like her won’t be an easy deal at all. But the Aces, with the league’s leading scorer, present a different challenge.

Their head coach, Becky Hammon, is the cherry on top

Hammon knows her team well. “We are our best when we run out of our defense and we put a couple of lineups out there that were super fast,” she revealed before a game against the Seattle Storm. This strategy helped her team advance to the semifinals while eliminating the Storm 2-0 from the 2024 playoffs.

It was quite easy for her; the Aces’ strong defensive effort in both games was all it took to close out the best-of-three series. While it was 78-67 in Game 1, the Aces increased it to 83-76 in Game 2. “When we’re fast, active defensively, and just disruptive, we know we can get out to the other end,” added Hammon.

Well, she’s right—defense played a major role in Round 1’s feat. With 4 blocks, 3 steals, and 35 defensive rebounds, the Aces grabbed their first win. The second followed up with 9 blocks, 7 steals, and 27 defensive rebounds. Overall, the Aces are a good team with A’ja Wilson, Alysha Clark, and Kelsey Plum in the forefront. But the question is: Will the Aces be enough to surpass the No.1 in form Liberty?