Aces rebound with blowout win over Dallas Wings, 86-68

By Mike Grimala (contact)

Saturday, June 22, 2019 | 10:04 p.m.

Las Vegas got back on track on the defensive end of the floor and Liz Cambage got a little personal satisfaction as the Aces rolled to an 86-68 win over the Dallas Wings on Saturday.

Cambage and the Wings parted on acrimonious terms when the 6-foot-8 center requested a trade in the offseason, and she played a big role in helping her new team to victory by posting 11 points and nine rebounds. Cambage registered a team-high plus/minus rating of +22 in her 27 minutes.

Dearica Hamby didn’t have that kind of motivation from which to draw energy, but she played as though the Wings had wronged her in a previous life, as the reserve forward went off for a career-high 27 points. Hamby made 11-of-14 shots from the field, including 3-of-3 from 3-point range.

Led by Hamby, Cambage and A’ja Wilson (20 points, eight rebounds), the Aces bounced back in a big way from Thursday’s blowout home loss to Washington.

Head coach Bill Laimbeer praised his team’s focus but cautioned against reading too much into a single win over one of the league’s bottom dwellers.

“Better effort on our part tonight,” Laimbeer said. “We had more energy than we had against Washington. This team is not Washington, though. We know that.”

Las Vegas improved to 5-4 with the win, while Dallas dropped to 2-6.

The Aces’ dominance began on the defensive end. After allowing a season-worst 95 points to Washington two days ago, they held Dallas to 28.6 percent from the field (22-of-77).

On the offensive end, Las Vegas moved the ball fluidly and finished with 31 assists on 35 made baskets (35-of-66 FGs).

With the Aces’ lead swelling to more than 20 points down the stretch, Laimbeer kept three of his starters — Kelsey Plum, Kayla McBride and Wilson — on the bench for the entire fourth quarter. McBride finished with six points, while Plum took just three shots and scored three points.

Laimbeer said his players aren’t concerned about personal statistics, just winning.

“I don’t want to hear a question about [McBride] and ‘What about Plum not scoring?,’ because [Dallas is] trying to take them away and our inside game is phenomenal,” Laimbeer said. “Every night is going to be different. Our players know that. They’ve accepted that. So they’re not angry about not getting their numbers; they just want to win basketball games. That’s what we’re about right now.”

Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.