Aces vs. Fever: Chelsea Gray Hits Two Buzzer-Beating 3s as Las Vegas Wins 86-84 in Overtime

Twenty-six feet, less than a second on the clock. Then 26 feet again, one tick on the clock. Chelsea Gray broke Gainbridge Fieldhouse twice on Thursday night, first with a 3 that forced overtime and then with another that won it, and the Las Vegas Aces left Indianapolis with an 86-84 victory over the Indiana Fever that should come with a warning label.

The defending WNBA champions trailed by 20 in the first half. They trailed by three in the final seconds of regulation. They trailed by one in the final seconds of overtime. A crowd of 17,274 spent most of the evening believing this one was in the bag, and Gray took the bag.

From 42-22 to Absolute Chaos

Indiana looked ready to stroll. A 10-0 run bridging the first two quarters broke an 18-18 tie, and the lead swelled to 42-22 with 3:08 left in the first half. Then Jackie Young decided to play a different sport. The Aces scored the last 15 points of the half and the first seven of the third quarter, a 22-0 avalanche that flipped the game to 44-42. Young's share of it was absurd: the final 13 before the break, the opening basket after it, and five of those first seven.

Las Vegas won the third 19-9, a period that also included a stoppage of several minutes with 4:38 left while security dealt with fans seated across from the Aces bench. The Fever said afterward that the fan conduct policy had not been violated. The Aces stretched their lead to 64-55 with about six minutes to play, and Indiana finally woke up. Ten straight Fever points followed, capped by Caitlin Clark's 30-foot running pull-up at 4:14 that made it 65-64 and just about took the roof off.

From there it was a shouting match. A'ja Wilson answered, Clark answered back. Clark's 27-foot 3 with 1:48 left put Indiana up 72-70, Wilson tied it at the line, and Aliyah Boston nudged the Fever ahead with 30.5 seconds to go. Kelsey Mitchell split a pair at 10.9 for 75-72. Clark then went to the line with seven seconds left and missed twice. Young found Gray, and the first dagger dropped with 0.8 on the clock. Tied at 75.

Overtime became a private duel. Wilson scored eight of the Aces' 11 points in the extra period, Mitchell scored seven of Indiana's nine, and Mitchell's driving layup at 38.2 seconds made it 84-83 Fever. Wilson then stopped Clark, the ball came loose with seven seconds left, Young got it to Gray, and the 26-footer on the run dropped with one second remaining. Officials checked both of her shots on replay. Both counted.

Gray's Six Points Were Worth More Than Most Players' Thirty

Gray's final line looks almost modest: 11 points, seven assists, four steals, 3 of 5 from deep in 40 minutes, plus five turnovers. Six of those points came on two shots with a combined 1.8 seconds showing, and both came off Young passes. That is what closers do, and the box score will never quite capture it.

Young finished with 22 points and nine assists, including 15 straight Aces points that the Associated Press described as a franchise record. Wilson needed 25 shots to get her 26 points, but she added 13 rebounds, went 6 of 6 at the line, and made the defensive play that set up the winner. NaLyssa Smith chipped in 14 points and nine rebounds, five of them on the offensive glass, and Jewell Loyd was plus-10 off the bench.

Indiana got everything it could ask for from two of its stars. Mitchell scored 28 on 10-of-18 shooting. Boston delivered 21 points and 12 rebounds, hit 3 of 5 from deep and added three steals and two blocks. Clark's night is more complicated. She had 20 points and eight assists and hit the shots that got Indiana back into the game, and there is no overtime without her. She also shot 2 of 10 from 3, committed eight turnovers and had the ball in the two moments that swung the night.

One for Four

Here is the sequence Fever fans will be replaying for a long time. In the final 10.9 seconds of regulation, Indiana took four free throws and made one. Mitchell missed her second, and Clark missed both of hers. Hit any one of those three and Gray's 3 does not force anything. The Fever would have gone home with a win and a story about how they survived Young's heater. Instead, Las Vegas got a second life, and it used that life better.

Stats That Matter

• 22-0: The Las Vegas run that turned a 42-22 deficit into a 44-42 lead.
• 86 to 67: Field-goal attempts. Indiana shot 46 percent to 41, but took 19 fewer shots.
• 22-16: Total turnovers, with Indiana on the wrong side, and a 22-18 Aces edge in points off them.
• 12-6: Offensive rebounds for Las Vegas.
• 1 of 4: Indiana's free-throw shooting in the last 10.9 seconds of regulation.

What It Means

Las Vegas is 22-9 and a sterling 13-4 on the road, with back-to-back wins after Monday's 109-87 rout at Atlanta. Minnesota is next on Saturday. The Aces also avoided a season-series sweep after losing the first two meetings 84-68 and 109-75 in their own building, though Indiana still takes the series 2-1.

The Fever fell to 19-12 and 11-6 at home, their second straight loss after a 108-100 defeat at Minnesota on Sunday. They get little time to stew, with a trip to Chicago on Saturday.

Post-Credits Scene

Every superhero movie now has a post-credits scene. Indiana sat through the credits, gathered up its popcorn, and got hit with one at the end of regulation. Then it came back for the sequel, sat through the credits again, and got hit with the exact same scene from the exact same 26 feet. At some point, you have to tip your cap to the director.

Stats from the official box score via ESPN. Game details as reported by the Associated Press.