Keep track of the 2025 WNBA Finals’ opening game between A’ja Wilson and the Las Vegas Aces and Alyssa Thomas’ Phoenix Mercury.
The first to four will win the WNBA war.
The debut best-of-seven WNBA Finals series is set to get underway in Nevada, as the Las Vegas Aces will take on the Phoenix Mercury in the annual championship finale. Phoenix, seeded fourth on the WNBA playoff bracket, is seeking is fourth championship and first since 2014 while Las Vegas seeks to earn its third over the last four season.
Paced by the fourth MVP effort from A’ja Wilson, Las Vegas overcame a slow to start to finish second before downing Seattle and Indiana in the opening stanzas of the postseason. Phoenix, on the other hand, is led by triple-double queen Alyssa Thomas and took down last year’s finalist, defending champion New York and league-leading Minnesota to return to women’s basketball’s promised hand. Fireworks are no doubt in store as the Association stages as a last hurrah of sorts before the turbulent collective bargaining agreement discussion presumably takes over the rest of the offseason.
Keep track of all the happening from Michelob Ultra Arena right here on BIL …
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FINAL: Aces 89, Mercury 86
(Las Vegas leads series 1-0)
Final Leaders
MERCURY (86)
Points: Kahleah Copper (21)
Assists: Alyssa Thomas (9)
Rebounds: Alyssa Thomas (10)
ACES (89)
Points: Dana Evans/A’ja Wilson (21)
Assists: Chelsea Gray (10)
Rebounds: A’ja Wilson (10)
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4th Quarter: Aces 89, Mercury 86
0.0—Unable to get a quick shot off and not calling a timeout, Phoenix loses a good bit of its time before Sabally desperately puts up a futile three that is rebounded by Young, who runs out the final two seconds to give Las Vegas the Game 1 win.
13.5—Copper fouls Young, bumping her out of bounds in an attempt to trap. Young hits both. Timeout Phoenix, one remaining. Kiah Stokes enters the game for Las Vegas for the first time for defensive purposes. (89-86 LVA)
16.7—Phoenix almost gets an eight-second violation, but Vegas musters a pass that Thomas tips out of bounds.
24.6—After denying Wilson a potential dagger double, Wilson knocks the ball free and goes coast-to-coast. There’s no make, but Young is charged with a blocking foul, that would put Thomas at the line for two. The play is under review after Las Vegas calls for a challenge. The call stands. She misses both and Gray gets the rebound.
51.5—Despite letting up an offensive board that ate up some seconds, Thomas drives and banks into a double that narrows things to one (87-86 LVA)
1:25—Whitcomb and Bonner each miss potential equalizers for Phoenix. Thomas is nursing her hand during breaks.
2:31—A deep throw from Sabally finds Thomas under the basket, and she pushes in the tally that lowers the gap to three (87-84 LVA)
2:42—Vegas gets its first two-possession lead of the night after Wilson scores when she secures the rebound off a Young miss (87-82 LVA)
3:37—A corner three from Evans gives her her fifth triple of the night and creates Las Vegas’ largest lead. Timeout Mercury, during which Sabally returns to the floor. (85-82 LVA)
3:50—Misses from Wilson and then Bonner keep the game knotted.
4:21—After Wilson gets a hand on a Whitcomb try, Vegas takes it down the floor and calls timeout.
4:48—It doesn’t last long as Gray and Wilson unite on the pick-and-roll for another tying two in the paint (82-82)
5:08—After intercepting a Young pass intended for Wilson, Akoa Makani goes coast-to-coast for a double (82-80 PHX)
6:10—Gray shakes off Akoa Makani and puts in an equalizing double (80-80)
6:29—While wincing, Whitcomb sinks a go-ahead three on the other end for the Mercury (80-78 PHX)
6:45—Evans sinks a three to give Las Vegas the lead back (78-77 LVA)
7:02—Though the Mercury don’t capitalize after the jump, they force a Young miss and Thomas gets to go the foul line on a Young foul. Thomas hits one-of-two (77-75 PHX)
7:44—Immediately after, Evans forces a jumpball against Thomas. A jumpball violation against Las Vegas keeps the ball in Phoenix’s end.
7:55—Evans sinks a three that leads to another Mercury timeout. One-point game as it dips under eight (76-75 PHX)
8:23—After Bonner tips back a Copper miss, Sabally is charged with her fifth foul on a Wilson drive and she is also assessed a technical for her frustrated reaction. Wilson hits the technical freebie and then hits one-of-two of the ones awarded on the standard foul. Young checks back in, Sabally sits for Akoa Makani. (76-72 PHX)
9:20—Loyd responds on the other end with a three-ball of her own. Young has finally returned to the scorer’s table (74-70 PHX)
9:37—Sabally rebounds her own misfire and sinks a repeated three (74-67 PHX)
10:00—Whitcomb has re-entered the game for Phoenix
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3rd Quarter: Mercury 71, Aces 67
0.0—Though Evans earning a driving double, a savvy deep pass from Thomas finds a streaking Sabally for the final points of the period. Still a two possession game going into the final frame. Whitcomb has returned to the Phoenix bench. (71-67 PHX)
13.5—Sabally remains in the game and sinks a three to end Vegas’ late run (69-65 PHX)
28.7—Sabally is charged with her fourth foul, which sends Wilson to the line for two. She hits both (66-65 PHX)
1:06—Despite Smith’s misses, consecutive doubles for Loyd and Wilson shrink the gap to one possession (66-63 PHX)
1:59—Now Whitcomb goes down for Phoenix and is only able to hop on one foot to the Phoenix locker room. Smith who fell into Whitcomb’s right leg, was fouled by Bonner on the play but misses two free throws, four total in four tries in this half.
2:52—Gray’s first attempt upon her comeback goes out of bounds, giving Phoenix the ball back.
3:04—After Wilson hits a two, Gray is back on the floor, coming into the game for Nye. Her ankle is taped upon her return. (66-59 PHX)
3:36—Despite hints of a travel on Thomas, Akoa Makani gets another three-point opportunity when she’s fouled by Loyd, her fourth. Loyd remains in the game as Akoa Makani hits all three tries. Of note, Aaliyah Nye has checked into the game for Vegas, her first action since Sept. 23, after Young goes for some lower body treatment on the sidelines. Sabally also re-enters. (66-57 PHX)
4:30—Bonner then rebounds a Young miss before the rookie Akoa Makani sinks her second three of the period, doubling the lead to six and forcing a Vegas timeout (63-57 PHX)
4:54—Bonner’s three in the corner gives Phoenix its lead back (60-57 PHX)
5:37—Copper fouls Gray on a three-point and the latter is down for an extended period. The play will be reviewed for a reckless closeout against Copper. Gray walks away gingerly from the incident. Copper’s foul is upgraded to a flagrant one. Gray stays in to at least shoot the ensuing free throws, and sinks all three. As Vegas keeps the ball, Gray jogs off the floor and to the locker room and is replaced by Evans (57-57)
6:04—Sabally’s offensive foul against Smith, unintentionally elbowing her in the face, is being review for an upgrade. It remains a common foul but Sabally sits down for Bonner after picking up her third foul.
7:05—Bell responds with a triple of her own, shortly before a Young foul allows Loyd to step back in for her (57-54 PHX)
7:25—Phoenix immediately gets it back, as seven in a row through drives by Sabally and Copper, as well as Monique Akoa Makani sinks her first basket of the game from three-point range (57-51 PHX)
8:49—Unexpected but welcome sources of scoring get Vegas off to a good start, as a pair of Smith doubles sandwich one from Bell to give them the lead back (51-50 LVA)
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Halftime Leaders
MERCURY (50)
Points: Kahleah Copper (19)
Assists: Alyssa Thomas (6)
Rebounds: DeWanna Bonner (4)
ACES (45)
Points: Dana Evans/Jewell Loyd (10)
Assists: A’ja Wilson/Jackie Young (3)
Rebounds: A’ja Wilson (5)
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Second Quarter: Mercury 50, Aces 45
0.0—Loud sinks a three in the final minute but there’s no more scoring the final 61 seconds. Phoenix leads by five at the halftime break (50-45 PHX)
1:46—Copper hits her fifth three of the first half, tying fellow Arizonan Diana Taurasi for the most in a WNBA Finals’ first half. It also creates a new largest lead for the Mercury (50-42 PHX)
2:30—Young gets it back to five just before a timeout on the floor (47-42 PHX)
3:04—Copper gives Phoenix its largest of the night so far with yet another triple (47-40 PHX)
3:43—Out of the timeout, Thomas finds Copper for yet another three. Smith has re-entered the game for Las Vegas (44-40 PHX)
4:03—The back-and-forth scoring barrage temporarily stops when Bonner rebounds a Young misfire but Wilson’s two off the feed from Loyd causes Phoenix to call a timeout to finally bring about a break to the action. (41-40 PHX)
4:42—Evans joins Loud in the double-figures off-the-bench sisterhood but another Thomas drive keeps the lead at three (41-38 PHX)
5:22—Loyd enters double-figures with a stepback double but Sami Whitcomb hits a three in the corner (39-36 PHX)
5:56—After a drive for Young, Thomas sinks her fourth on four tries (36-34 PHX)
6:34—Vegas again takes the lead courtesy of Evans’ bench press but Sabally instantly responds with her first triple of the night (34-32 PHX)
7:02—Sabally is charged with her first foul, sending Wilson to the line. She gets one of two. (31-29 PHX)
7:17—Young ties the game with a double fed to her from Wilson but Copper sinks another Phoenix triple on the other line (31-28 PHX)
7:56—Bonner immediately responds with a corner three of her own (28-26 PHX)
8:13—After DeWanna Bonner briefly gives Phoenix the lead back, Evans continues the bench barrage with a three (26-25 LVA)
9:20—Vegas briefly takes the lead back on an Evans drive but Mack almost immediately ties it back up (23-23)
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1st Quarter: Aces 21, Mercury 21
0.0—Neither team cashes in on a chance to take the lead, and the game is tied after the opening period (21-21)
50.7—Off a savvy feed from Gray, Loyd puts in a reverse lay-up under the basket, creating a tie game. She leads all scorers with eight points off the bench (21-21)
1:44—Loyd gets a double before reliever Dana Evans finds Gray’s first triple of the night, creating a one-possession game (21-19 PHX)
2:22—Following successful Wilson free throws, Thomas gets her third basket on as many attempts after a spin (21-14 PHX)
3:12—After she exchanges doubles with Gustafson, Thomas picks up her first foul charge (19-12 PHX)
4:15—Following a double for Loud, she and Young are each charged with fouls, the latter sending Copper to the line. She hits both, and Phoenix is also in the bonus for the rest of the period (17-10 PHX)
5:05—Shortly after her entry during the free throw attempts (replacing Mack), Kathryn Westbeld finds Copper for the game’s first three (15-8 PHX)
5:26—Mack responds off a feed from Thomas but Vegas scores in its third consecutive possession after the timeout after Jackie Young gets two singles after a Copper foul (12-8 PHX)
5:47—Out of the timeout, Jewell Loyd (who entered for Bell about two minutes prior) and Wilson each earn doubles to narrow the gap in half (10-6 PHX)
6:39—Copper and Mack prevent a Wilson double, leading to a lay-up for Sabally off the feed from Thomas. Las Vegas calls timeout after allowing its 10th tally in a row (10-2 PHX)
7:11—Sabally draws another visit to the line, though this one is charged to Chelsea Gray. Megan Gustafson enters the game for Smith while Sabally sinks two again (8-2 PHX)
7:33—NaLyssa Smith picks up two quick fouls, the latter sending Satou Sabally to the foul line. Smith remains in the game while Sabally sinks both (6-2 PHX)
8:06—A drive from Alyssa Thomas gives the Mercury the lead (4-2 PHX)
8:29—Kahleah Copper banks a double in on the other end to put the Mercury on the ledger (2-2)
8:43—After a tepid start on each side (including a Smith turnover), A’ja Wilson scores the first points of the finals (2-0 LVA)
10:00—Natasha Mack wins the tip from NaLyssa Smith, and the 2025 WNBA Finals are underway
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Pregame
What: Phoenix Mercury @ Las Vegas Aces, WNBA Finals, Game 1
Where: Michelob Ultra Arena, Las Vegas, NV
Watch: 8 p.m. ET, ESPN
Who’s Favored: LVA -3.5
Starting Lineups
MERCURY: Monique Akoa Makani, Kahleah Copper, Natasha Mack, Satou Sabally, Alyssa Thomas
ACES: Kiersten Bell, Chelsea Gray, NaLyssa Smith, A’ja Wilson, Jackie Young
Referees: Eric Brewton, Jenna Reneau, Randy Richardson
Geoff Magliocchetti is on X @GeoffJMags