Aces vs. Liberty score, highlights: New York clinches playoff spot with resounding win in Las Vegas

The Liberty are the first team to earn a spot in the postseason and look like a force to be reckoned with once again

The New York Liberty have been the best team in the WNBA this season, and they proved it again on Saturday with a 79-67 win over the two-time defending champion Las Vegas Aces. With the win, the Liberty improved to 23-4 on the season, and became the first team in the league to clinch a playoff spot. 

Early on, the Aces could not miss. They made their first five attempts from behind the arc and built a quick double-digit lead that had the Vegas crowd rocking. From that point on, though, it was all Liberty. Sabrina Ionescu led a 7-0 run to cut the deficit to four points at the end of the first, and the Liberty never looked back. The Liberty's defense was tremendous over the final three quarters, as they held the Aces to just 39 points on 15-of-50 from the field. 

Ionescu led the way for the Liberty with 23 points, six rebounds and three assists, while Breanna Stewart went for 18 points, seven rebounds, two steals and two blocks and Jonquel Jones added 10 points, 17 rebounds and seven assists. 

Here are some key takeaways from the game.

Liberty clinch a playoff spot, closing in on No. 1 seed

There's still more than a month remaining in the regular season, but the Liberty have already guaranteed themselves a spot in the playoffs. Now, the question is about seeding. Can they hold off the Connecticut Sun for the No. 1 seed and secure home-court advantage throughout the playoffs?

Based on everything we've seen this season, the answer is almost certainly yes. 

After Saturday's win, the Liberty are three games clear of the Sun, and own the tiebreaker between the clubs, which essentially gives them a four-game lead. Plus, the Liberty have an easy schedule the rest of the way, with only six of their 13 remaining games coming against fellow playoff teams. 

Perhaps the more interesting question would be asking how early will the Liberty lock up the top spot. 

"We're super excited to clinch a spot in the playoffs," Ionescu said. "Obviously, our goal isn't just to make it there... but it's nice to see we've been able to pick up where we left off, and keep grinding away." 

Liberty's defense steps up

Ever since the Liberty put this superteam together, it has been an offense-first operation. They set numerous 3-point records last season and have the best offensive rating in the league this time around at 107.8. On Saturday, though, it was their defense that stepped up and got the job done. 

After the Aces raced out of the gates to build an 11-point lead in the first quarter, the Liberty locked in defensively. They were physical, especially in the paint where they held the Aces to 12-of-24 shooting, showed multiple bodies on drives and contested well on the perimeter. 

The Aces' 67 points were their fourth-fewest since their title run began in the 2022 season, and their 36.9% from the field was their third-worst of the season. 

Aces' lack of depth catching up on them

The Aces have always been extremely reliant on their core four of A'ja Wilson, Chelsea Gray, Kelsey Plum and Jackie Young. They won the title in each of the last two seasons despite having the lowest-scoring bench in the league both times. This season, their continued lack of depth appears to be catching up to them. 

They are once again near the bottom in bench scoring at 14.7 points per game, and have not found anyone who can reliably take some pressure off their top scorers. That, combined with Candace Parker's retirement and Gray's early-season injury is wearing their stars down. 

Wilson, Plum and Young have had to play more minutes and take more shots than they did last season. All three have seen their efficiency drop as a result. Plum and Young, in particular, have not been able to maintain the same level of consistency, as the latter's four-point effort on 1-of-8 shooting on Saturday showed. 

If you're going to rely on your stars as much as the Aces do, you need all of them firing at a high level in order to win. That just hasn't happened for the Aces this season. 

[Aug 17, 2024 at 6:12 pm ET · Jack Maloney]

FINAL: Liberty 79 -- Aces 67

The Liberty pulled away in the final few minutes to secure a 12-point win and improve to 23-4 on the season. In the process, they became the first team in the league to clinch a playoff spot this season. As for the Aces, they dropped back to fifth place with the loss. 

Ionescu led the way for the Liberty with 23 points, six rebounds and three assists, while Breanna Stewart went for 18 points, seven rebounds, two steals and two blocks and Jonquel Jones added 10 points, 17 rebounds and seven assists. 

[Aug 17, 2024 at 5:49 pm ET · Jack Maloney]

Unsuccessful challenge

Referees uphold the block call on Gray, saying that she was not established when Stewart went into her shooting motion. Stewart completes the three-point play and Liberty go up 10 here early in the fourth quarter.