Las Vegas Aces Sweep Phoenix To Win Third WNBA Crown In Four Years, Capping Season Of League’s Record-Setting Growth
ADVERTISEMENT
Shop at Jay’s Market at 190 East Flamingo Road at the Koval Lane intersection east of the Strip.
ADVERTISEMENT
By Cassandra Cousineau, LVSportsBiz.com WNBA-Aces Writer
The Las Vegas Aces are once again on top of the WNBA basketball world, capping record-setting growth for the expanding league.
Behind a commanding performance from league MVP A’ja Wilson, the Aces defeated the Phoenix Mercury, 97–86, in Game 4 for a sweep to capture their third WNBA championship in four years in the WNBA’s first season of a Best-of-7 Final.
The Aces led from the start and never let up, solidifying their dynasty status for the Game 4 double-digit win.
A sellout crowd of 17,071 filled Footprint Center to witness the Aces’ coronation. Wilson scored 31 points, while Chelsea Gray and Jackie Young added 18 apiece. Las Vegas built a 20-point lead (58–38) in the third quarter and held off a late Mercury rally.
“We’re champions!” shouted Gray, now a four-time WNBA champion as confetti fell from the rafters.
The championship comes at a time when the WNBA is enjoying its strongest business momentum in decades.
According to ESPN, Game 1 of the 2025 WNBA Finals averaged 1.9 million viewers, peaking at 2.5 million . It’s the most-watched Finals Game 1 in 28 years. That represents a 62 percent year-over-year increase, as the WNBA Playoffs overall rose 16 percent in viewership compared to 2024.
Las Vegas’ season, however, was anything but easy. On August 2, the defending champions sat at 14–14 after a 53-point loss to Minnesota, the worst defeat by a reigning WNBA champion.
Head coach Becky Hammon recalled that breaking point.
“I had a lot of private tears,” Hammon admitted. “So much frustration trying to figure it out. The way I did was just telling them, ‘I really believe in you.’”
The Aces responded with a 16-game winning streak to end the regular season, finishing 30–14 and locking up the No. 2 seed in the playoffs.
Before Game 4, with one win separating her team from another title, Hammon kept the message simple:
“Stay locked in.”
Wilson, who became the first four-time WNBA MVP this year, did exactly that. She dominated both ends of the floor throughout the Finals and was named Finals MVP, adding to a trophy case that already includes Defensive Player of the Year, First Team All-WNBA, and All-Defensive First Team honors.
“When you’ve been in the trenches and you really don’t know what’s wrong, you’re just trying to find answers,” Wilson said. “At the beginning of every season, we write out our goals and it’s always to win a championship. But the road, we weren’t expecting it to look like this.”
The team’s offseason moves added to the drama. Las Vegas traded away four-time All-Star and two-time champion Kelsey Plum in a three-team deal that brought Jewell Loyd to the Aces. Combined with a management shakeup, the new roster chemistry took time to gel.
After a 9–11 start, the Aces rediscovered their rhythm. The franchise’s third title in four years places Las Vegas in elite company, trailing only the Houston Comets, who won the league’s first four championships from 1997–2000.
Off the court, the WNBA faces a pivotal offseason. The league’s collective bargaining agreement (CBA) is set to expire Oct. 31, and players have already signaled that negotiations with the league office will be closely watched.
“This one means a lot,” Hammon said. “Because we had to fight through so much to get here. And through it all, we stayed together.”
PSA
