Aces vs. Valkyries: A'ja Wilson's 28 and Jackie Young's Six 3s Earn Las Vegas' First Home Win of the Season

It took until June, but the Las Vegas Aces finally remembered where they live. A'ja Wilson piled up 28 points and 14 boards, Jackie Young splashed 6-of-8 from 3-point range on her way to a season-high 27, and the last four minutes at Michelob ULTRA Arena were tense enough to make the slot machines down the road feel like a safer bet.

Las Vegas held off the Golden State Valkyries 84-79 on Saturday, and that made for the team's first home victory of the season. Gabby Williams scored a career-high 27 points in the loss and spent a chunk of the fourth quarter threatening to steal the whole afternoon. Chelsea Gray, meanwhile, quietly climbed to the top of a franchise list and passed her own head coach to get there.

Nobody Could Hold a Lead for Long

Wilson opened by outscoring Golden State all by herself, putting up 14 points to the Valkyries' 13 in the first quarter as Las Vegas took a 20-13 lead. That is not a misprint. An 8-0 run in the second stretched it to 33-21 and looked like the start of a routine day at the office, except the Valkyries responded with nine straight of their own and scored 14 of the final 19 points of the half. Golden State hit five 3s in the second quarter, two apiece from Kayla Thornton and Janelle Salaun, and it was 38-35 at the break.

The third quarter finished 20-20, so nothing got settled. Golden State's only lead up to that point had come on Williams' opening layup, until Tiffany Hayes hit a 3 that made it 61-58 with 8:48 left. From there, the game turned into a proper back-and-forth mess, with seven lead changes overall and neither side able to breathe.

Young's 3 with 4:48 left gave Las Vegas a 70-67 edge. Williams answered with a step-back 3 to tie it. Wilson scored, then Veronica Burton converted a three-point play for a 73-72 lead, and Williams drilled another 3 with 3:03 remaining to make it 76-72. That four-point cushion was the Valkyries' biggest of the day, and they would not score again for more than two minutes.

Young, Wilson and a New Name Atop the List

Young is the headline for anyone who likes efficiency. She finished 8-of-15 overall, 6-of-8 from deep and 5-of-5 at the line, with five rebounds and five assists to go with it. All six of those 3s mattered in a five-point game, and she never looked rattled by the moment. When she has that shot going, Las Vegas has a second star who can take the air out of an arena or fill it back up.

Wilson was Wilson. Her 9-of-17 shooting, perfect 8-of-8 at the line and 12 defensive rebounds gave her a third straight double-double and her fifth of the season, and she took and made the shots that decided it. Gray added 12 points, six rebounds and six assists, and those six moved her to 1,134 for her Aces career, past Becky Hammon's 1,133 and into first place on the franchise's career assist list. Hammon, of course, is now the one coaching her. That has to be a fun conversation in the film room.

Williams was the best player on the other side by a mile, shooting 10-of-17 with three 3s, six rebounds and two steals on her way to that career high. Burton's 15 points came on a rougher 5-of-16, including 1-of-8 from deep, and yet she kept attacking in the biggest moments. Salaun scored 11 and Thornton had 10 with nine rebounds. Las Vegas was missing Chennedy Carter, who sat a second straight game with a leg issue.

Young Finds the Dagger

Trailing 76-72, Las Vegas got its life back when Young drew a foul on a 3-point attempt and made all three free throws with 2:16 left. Wilson then put the Aces up 77-76 with a 7-foot turnaround off a Young feed at the 52.3 mark. Burton responded with a driving layup, giving Golden State one last lead at 78-77 with 38.3 seconds to go.

That set up the play of the game. Young rose up and buried a 25-footer with 24.2 seconds left, turning a one-point deficit into an 80-78 lead. Burton split a pair at the line, and Young and Wilson went 4-for-4 down the stretch to ice it. For a Valkyries team that had done so much right for most of the afternoon, it was a brutal way to lose it.

Stats That Matter

• 13-of-30: Las Vegas from 3, good for 43 percent, against 11-of-35 for Golden State.
• 22-14: The Aces' assist advantage, on one fewer made field goal.
• 17-of-22: Las Vegas at the foul line, with Wilson and Young combining to go 13-of-13.
• 38-36: Golden State's narrow rebounding win, which came with 10 offensive boards to the Aces' six.
• 28-20: The Valkyries' edge in the paint, a real effort that the 3-point gap wiped out.

Where Everybody Stands

The Aces, the defending WNBA champions, move to 7-3 and have won three straight after back-to-back losses. Their home mark is only 1-2, which means they are 6-1 everywhere else. They have also now beaten Golden State twice in six days, following a 91-81 win in San Francisco last Sunday. Seattle visits Monday.

The Valkyries drop to 6-5 and 2-3 on the road, and this is two straight losses by a combined eight points after an 87-84 defeat at Minnesota on Thursday. They get to go home and host Phoenix on Tuesday, which should feel pretty good after a week of close calls.

Home Sweet Haunted Airbnb

The funniest thing about this Aces team is that it has spent the season treating the road like home and home like a haunted Airbnb. That finally changed on Saturday, and it took a career day from an opposing star to make them sweat it out. Young hit the shot, Wilson closed the door and Gray quietly took the top spot on a franchise list from the woman calling her plays. For the defending champions, it was a small moment. For a team that had not yet won in its own building, it probably felt like plenty.

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