The Las Vegas Aces will host the Indiana Fever for a series-deciding Game 3 on Thursday, Oct. 1 at 6 p.m. at Michelob ULTRA Arena. The playoff matchup will air nationally on USA and CNBC.
The third-seeded Aces (31–13 in the regular season, 1–1 in the playoff series) are seeking to advance to the WNBA Semifinals after dropping Game 2 on the road 99–89. Indiana, the sixth seed (28–16 regular season, 1–1 playoff series), comes to Las Vegas looking to complete an upset and secure its own spot in the second round.
Las Vegas won the opening game of the series behind dominant defense, holding Caitlin Clark and Kelsey Mitchell to a combined 4 of 16 from three-point range and limiting Indiana to 38 points in the second half. In Game 2, the Fever reversed the defensive pressure, holding the Aces to 23.5 percent shooting from the floor in the third quarter—their worst shooting quarter of the postseason.
The Aces' offensive struggles in Game 2 extended beyond ball movement. Las Vegas scored only 26 points in the paint, well below their regular-season average of 39.6 per game, while allowing 58 points in the paint to Indiana—significantly above their season defense average of 40.5 ppg.
Despite the loss, the Aces' offensive stars put up strong individual performances. Jackie Young led the team with 31 points on a perfect 13 of 13 from the free-throw line, tying for the third-most free-throw makes without a miss in WNBA postseason history. A'ja Wilson added 22 points, though she made just 1 of 6 from mid-range. Chelsea Gray rounded out the trio with 10 points. Combined, the three accounted for 70.8 percent of Las Vegas's scoring in the loss.
For Indiana, the game was led by the Fever's star trio: Caitlin Clark scored 27 points, Kelsey Mitchell added 26, and Aliyah Boston contributed 22.
Players ruled out for the Aces include Dana Evans (right knee). Additionally, Janiah Barker and NaLyssa Smith are out for the remainder of the season.
The winner of Thursday's game advances to the WNBA Semifinals on Sunday, Oct. 4. Should Las Vegas prevail, the Aces will face the winner of the second-seeded Golden State Warriors (1–0) and seventh-seeded Dallas Wings (0–1) series, which continues Thursday night. That potential matchup would begin in the Bay Area.
Aces coach Becky Hammon is scheduled to hold a pregame press conference at 4 p.m. PDT. Fever coach Stephanie White will meet with media at 5:05 p.m.