A’ja Wilson became the first player in WNBA history with 1,000 points in a season, reaching that mark with 29 points as the Las Vegas Aces knocked off the visiting Connecticut Sun 84-71 on Sunday night.
Wilson ended the game right at 1,000 points, hitting an 11-foot jumper with 1:57 remaining. She finished 13 of 25 from the field and made 3 of 5 free-throw attempts.
Wilson had 25 points through three quarters, scoring seven of her 14 third-quarter points in the last three minutes of that period. She scored on a 12-foot jumper on the possession before hitting her final attempt.
The Aces have two games remaining in the regular season for Wilson, a center, to add to her record total.
Kelsey Plum’s 14 points and Jackie Young’s 13 points aided the Aces (25-13), who’ve won three games in a row.
It was the end of a three-game winning streak for the Sun (27-11), who suffered their most lopsided defeat of the season. The largest margin of defeat this year for Connecticut, which trailed by as many as 21 points Sunday, had been a 12-point loss to the Atlanta Dream on Aug. 18.
Marina Mabrey scored 18 points off the Connecticut bench, while Brionna Jones posted 17 points and nine rebounds and Tyasha Harris had 16 points.
The Aces carried over momentum from late in the first half to go on a 16-7 run to begin the second half, building the game’s first double-digit margin. By the end of the third quarter, the score was 71-51.
The Aces ended the first half on an 11-1 run, leading 48-40 at halftime. They were boosted by 54.1-percent shooting from the field, while Wilson had 11 points by the break.
Connecticut benefited by getting to the free-throw line, going 8-for-11 in the opening half while Las Vegas was just 2-for-3.
The teams combined for 54 first-quarter points, with Las Vegas ahead 29-25 after the first 10 minutes. There was a scoring flurry in the final 39.7 seconds of the quarter when 11 points were compiled.
–Field Level Media
