Lindsey Wasson / AP
Seattle Storm guard Jewell Loyd shoots between the defense of Las Vegas Aces forward Dearica Hamby (5) and guard Jackie Young (0) during Game 4 Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2022, in Seattle.
Published Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2022 | 9:25 p.m.
Updated Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2022 | 11:38 p.m.
When Chelsea Gray gets it going offensively, A'ja Wilson knows to get out of her way.
Wilson has deferred to Gray on many occasions this postseason. Because of that, the Las Vegas Aces are three wins from a championship.
Gray scored 15 of her team-high 31 points in the fourth quarter, capped off by consecutive jumpers in the final minute, and the Aces advanced to the WNBA Finals after a 97-92 win over the Seattle Storm in Game 4 of the league semifinals at Climate Pledge Area in Seattle on Tuesday.
This is the second time the Aces will be playing for the title since relocating to Las Vegas in 2018. They lost the 2020 finals to the Storm.
But that group did not have the veteran point guard Gray, who has been the Aces' savior offensively during this playoff run. Gray finished 13 of 22, made four 3-pointers Tuesday and picked up 10 assists to become the first player in WNBA history to finish with 30 points and 10 assists.
"At the end of the day, you've just got to get out of the way and let people rock," Wilson said. "When Chelsea is rocking and rolling, she's the head of our snake."
Dating back to Game 1 of the first round against Phoenix, Gray has bailed out the Aces whenever they've needed a basket. It's not just getting to the rim. Gray is hitting pull-up jumpers from midrange, heaving 3-pointers with the shot clock running down, converting tough jumpers with taller defenders closing in.
No matter the shot, Gray has hit it. She's made 57 of 91 shots throughout the postseason, a 62.6% success rate. That's currently the second best mark in WNBA postseason history, trailing only 6-foot-2 forward/center Candice Dupree with the Mercury in 2014 (61 for 92, 66.3%).
The 5-11 Gray has made 22 of 37 from 3-point range in six playoff games, a 59.4% mark that is tops in WNBA playoff history.
"I don't really know how," said Gray when asked how she's shooting so efficiently. "I'm going into my shots like I practice them. It's not anything different."
No matter which one you ask, Wilson or Gray each will say the other is the reason why the Aces are back in the WNBA Finals. The Aces' pick-and-roll tandem has become a weapon because, Wilson said in not so many words after Game 2, "you've gotta guard it."
When the Aces switched to a small-ball lineup in Game 2, the offense opened up for Wilson and Gray. It got Wilson more favorable 1-on-1 matchups in the post, while Gray had more spacing at the top of the key.
Following Game 1 when she finished 3 of 10 for just 8 points, Wilson said she couldn't sleep that night. She followed that in Game 2 with 33 points and 13 rebounds and then a playoff career-high 34 points and 11 rebounds in Sunday's Game 3 overtime win.
Wilson recorded her third straight double-double with 23 points and 13 rebounds on Tuesday. More notably, Wilson played all but four minutes the entire series.
"I feel great," said a laughing Wilson. "The biggest thing is mind over matter. Some of these things, I don't have time to be tired. My teammates need me."
The Aces got a balanced offensive attack at the right time, and given the opposition, they needed it. Seattle superstar Breanna Stewart scored a career-high 42 points with 26 of them in the first half. Storm guard Jewell Loyd bounced back after a rough two games to score 29 points.
No other Storm player scored in double figures. That included Sue Bird, who finished with eight points and eight assists in what is the legendary 41-year-old point guard's final WNBA game.
"That's not a four-seed out there," Wilson said of the Storm. "We have to give credit where it's due. They gave us everything they had, and respectfully, they put us in a position where we had to lean on each other."
Las Vegas, meanwhile, got a quick start from Kelsey Plum with 10 of her 15 points coming in the first quarter. Guard Jackie Young, who entered Game 4 shooting 30% in the series, broke out of her slump by scoring 10 of her 18 points in the fourth quarter and all three 3-point attempts.
The ghosts of playoff past, for now, are in the Aces' rearview mirror. The failures of the past three years, including last year's heartbreaking five-game loss to Phoenix in the semis, are all but a distant memory.
Game 1 of the Finals will be at Michelob Ultra Arena on Sunday (Noon, ABC). The top-seeded Aces await the winner of the series between the Chicago Sky and Connecticut Sun, with the deciding Game 5 taking place Thursday in Chicago.
"We had a point after [the All-Star break] where we said, 'all right, y'all. We're either going to come together, or we're going to fall apart. We're going to be great individuals, or we're going to be one friggin', unbelievable team. You decide,'" coach Becky Hammon said. "They keep choosing each other. As long as they do that, I like us."
Danny Webster can be reached at 702-259-8814 or [email protected]. Follow Danny on Twitter at twitter.com/DannyWebster21.
