Las Vegas Aces coach Becky Hammon expressed her concern about her team’s defense before the season even got started. It was the one area she knew had to be sharp if they planned on making a run to a second straight championship and fourth in five seasons.
“Probably it’ll never be perfect, but you try to get better every day, so we just put one foot in front of the other,” Hammon said on May 9. “[We’ll] keep working at it until the defense is what we want it to be.”
It’s definitely not where they want it to be after watching Saturday’s 98-87 loss to the Minnesota Lynx. Las Vegas (22-10) let Lynx stars Napheesa Collier and Olivia Miles unite for nearly half of Minneapolis’ points and surrendered 15 three-pointers in defeat, its second on a five-game road trip that ends on Sunday afternoon against the New York Liberty (9:30 a.m. PT, ABC).
“I thought we had a pretty clear and basic game plan and this was probably one of our poorest execution games that we’ve had all year,” Hammon said after Saturday’s loss. “We’ve got to learn a lot off paper and our film because we just don’t have time to practice. We have to be quick learners in these situations.”
While the Aces rank seventh in scoring defense after Saturday’s games (86.9), it has let up just under 92 points a game since July 12, a span that has seen them turn in a mediocre 5-4 record. That places ninth in the WNBA in that time period and they’ve allowed at least 87 tallies in five of the nine games played.
To compare, when the Aces were 14-14 and on the brink of falling out of playoff contention last season, they were allowing the fifth-most at 83.3. From Aug. 3 through the end of the season, they allowed only 76.3, third-lowest in the WNBA for that span. That set the tone for a perfect 16-0 stretch to close out the regular season before they defeated Seattle, Indiana, and Phoenix in the ensuing playoffs.
With the season’s fourth quarter looming, here are three things the Aces must do if they plan on parading another championship down Las Vegas Boulevard …
Azzi Fudd is COOKING
Her floater puts her up to 19 points on the night as the Wings lead by 4 over the Aces in the 4th quarter!pic.twitter.com/7SjbscFbCr
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) May 29, 2026
May the Fourth Be With Them
If there is one point in a game the Aces must improve on defense, it’s the fourth quarter. They rank 13th in allowing an average of 22.8 points in the final stanza, third-most in the league, in front of only the Los Angeles Sparks and Toronto Tempo. They’re the only team that would make the playoffs right now that ranks in the bottom six in that category.
The problem with their defensive lapse in the fourth is that they also rank 13th on offense, scoring just 20.5 over the final 10 minutes. The current average point differential has them in the red at minus-2.3, the second-worst margin in the league ahead of only Connecticut.
Going back to last season’s comparison, the Aces ranked dead last in fourth quarter defense through their first 28 games, allowing 20.9 in those finales There was marginal improvement amidst the late takeover, as they saw that dip to 19.4 over the final 10 to tie for the fifth-lowest in the league.
a’ja wilson tonight:
28 points
14 rebounds
3 assists& the game winning rebound to secure the aces the first home win of the season.
pic.twitter.com/MilAcyvOxC
— a’ja wilson HQ (@aja22wilsonHQ) June 6, 2026
Another One
Second-chance opportunities are huge in the WNBA, and the Aces aren’t giving themselves enough. After Saturday’s loss, Las Vegas ranks 13th in the W with an average of 7.6 offensive rebounds per game. Granted, they did grab 12 on Saturday but it has to be more consistent down the stretch and when the postseason begins. For the season, the Aces rank ninth with 11.1 second-chance points.
It wasn’t so bad through their first 23 games, where they averaged 8.0 offensive boards an outing. But they’re averaging just 6.7 during the last nine, third fewest in the league, in front of only, again, non-playoff teams Chicago and Phoenix. Their score production has suffered as a result of their recent decline on the offensive glass, as they’re putting up only 9.9 second-chance points since July 12 … once again, the lowest of any playoff-eligible team. In comparison, seven of the top eight teams in second-chance points during that recent stretch would be in the playoffs if they started immediately.
Dana Evans went on a tear in Game 1 of the WNBA Finals for the Aces
Here’s a closer look at her journey
pic.twitter.com/4Hg6mcCRqL
— espnW (@espnW) October 5, 2025
Off The Bench
It’s nice to boast scoring threats such as A’ja Wilson, Chelsea Gray, and Jackie Young, but championship teams need bench scoring. The Aces rank near the bottom of the league in the category with 19.8 points per game this season, as production in that department has struggled to keep the starters’ momentum.
Las Vegas had 23 bench points on Saturday thanks to both Dana Evans (11) and Jewell Loyd (10) getting into double figures while Brianna Turner added two more. But, as has frequently been the case since the release of Chennedy Carter, that’s not always sustainable.
In their defense, the Aces had two reserves unavailable: Cheyenne Parker-Tyus remained in concussion protocol for the sixth consecutive game while Justine Pissott is nursing a right leg injury. Kierstan Bell and Mai Yamamoto were also held out by coach’s decision on Saturday.
The Aces were able to overcome bench deficiency during their first two championship seasons, when their reserves averaged a league-worst 12.9 and 13.5 in 2022 and 2023, respectively. Last year’s backups ranked eighth with 20.3 points, but they’re back under the 20-point threshold this season, placing 11th heading into the final dozen. With potential playoff opponents like Golden State (1st, 35.7) and Indiana (5th, 22.4) getting more production from their respective second units, the Aces have to find a way to get their bench healthy and productive.
“They put a lot of work in, even though a lot of times they’re not getting a ton of burn on the court, they are working behind the scenes to stay ready,” Hammon said of the backups. “I feel like we have a really good development coach in Micah Fraction and Nola (Henry) also helps along those lines in that area. But, yeah, they’re going to stay ready. I imagine in the next few games or so they’re gonna get some burn.”
W.G. Ramirez is a veteran sports writer from Las Vegas and a Staff Writer at Ballislife.com. Follow him on X at @WillieGRamirez.
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