A'ja Wilson scored 36 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as the Las Vegas Aces beat the Indiana Fever 94-83 to advance to the WNBA semifinals.
A'ja Wilson scored 36 points Thursday night, two days after a confrontation with a fan in Indianapolis drew her a technical foul.
The Las Vegas Aces beat the Indiana Fever 94-83 at Michelob Ultra Arena to close out their first-round series 2-1. Wilson added 10 rebounds. She shot 11-of-18 from the field and 12-of-15 at the free-throw line.
Tuesday's incident came during Game 2, which Indiana won 99-89. Afterward, Aces coach Becky Hammon called out her team's defense for what the Fever did in the paint. The WNBA did not discipline Wilson beyond the technical, ESPN reported.
In a postgame news conference reported by ESPN's Michael Voepel, Wilson said she did not use Tuesday as fuel for an elimination game.
"I have my days," Wilson said. "I have my moments because I'm human. But after a while, I understood I didn't want to be a distraction to myself and my team. And I knew what we had to do coming into tonight. So I put it behind me."
Wilson Leads Aces Back to Semifinals
Las Vegas is in the semifinals for the eighth straight season. The Aces have won three of the past four WNBA championships. A fourth title overall would tie the Minnesota Lynx, Seattle Storm, and Houston Comets for the most in league history.
Wilson, Chelsea Gray, and Jackie Young are in their sixth season together. Before tip-off, the Aces ruled out starting forward Stephanie Talbot with a leg injury, and Jewell Loyd moved into the starting lineup.
Hammon said she told Gray and Young before the game to prepare for a long night.
"I just told them to be ready to run 40," Hammon said. "You're not coming out until you tell me you need [to]."
Both played all 40 minutes. Gray finished with 23 points, four rebounds, and five assists. Young had 18 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists and went 6-of-6 at the line. Loyd scored 11 points in 35 minutes, and Wilson played 37.
About three minutes into the game, Aces forward Brianna Turner walked into the Fever's huddle on the floor, and Caitlin Clark pushed her out of it, according to ESPN. Both players were given technical fouls. Before the game, Clark had said she expected more switches involving Wilson in Game 3.
Clark scored 11 points in the first quarter, which ended tied at 31. Las Vegas won the second quarter 23-17 and led 54-48 at halftime.
Indiana got within 82-80 on a 3-pointer by Kelsey Mitchell with three minutes left. On the Fever's next possession, Mitchell missed a shot and was called for a loose-ball foul. Indiana challenged the call, and the challenge was unsuccessful. Las Vegas outscored the Fever 12-3 the rest of the way.
The Aces went 28-of-35 from the free-throw line. The Fever went 14-of-20.
Mitchell finished with 23 points on 7-of-23 shooting. Aliyah Boston had 19 points and 10 rebounds, and Clark scored 18 on 6-of-18 shooting with four assists and six turnovers. Myisha Hines-Allen added 12 points and 12 rebounds.
Indiana averaged 96.0 points during the regular season and shot a league-best 38.6 percent from 3-point range, according to ESPN. On Thursday, the Fever went 9-of-32 from deep.
Fever Reflect on Another Playoff Exit
Mitchell and Clark sat together on the dais after the game, in an availability reported by ESPN's Kareem Copeland. Thursday was the fifth playoff game of Clark's career.
"Probably [let this] hurt a little bit," Clark said. "This is really only my fifth game playing in the postseason, so you kind of take the burn a little bit but also [remember] how much fun this season was and how together our group was and just getting to replicate that going forward."
Indiana was the No. 6 seed for the third straight season. In 2025, the Fever came within an overtime period of the WNBA Finals.
For Mitchell, the Fever are still getting their feet wet in the playoffs against a Las Vegas team full of playoff experience.
"Being part of playoffs, this is what it's all about, to get the experience," Mitchell said, "to figure out what you've got to be better at, to figure out what your flaws [are], to figure out what your weaknesses are. I think as a group, we still are getting our feet wet on the playoff experience side. And we played against a team that is full of playoff experiences. So that speaks for itself."
"I think all we could do is keep fighting our best to be able to get in these positions to be able to get the experience," Mitchell continued. "I think that you look at the film, you take your preseason and use it for what it is, and I think we put ourselves in a position to be back here hopefully next year."
Mitchell averaged 24.7 points during the regular season, second in the league. Her 1,086 points set the WNBA single-season record. She also set the single-season mark for 3-pointers with 135. The four-time All-Star will be an unrestricted free agent.
Thursday, Mitchell and Clark combined for 41 points on 13-of-41 shooting, including 6-of-23 from 3-point range. Clark said there will not be many nights when the two of them shoot that poorly together.
"Kelsey, in my opinion, had the best season of any guard that there's ever been in this league," Clark explained. "There's a lot of really good wins and not many nights where me and Kels are going to combine to shoot as poorly as we did tonight. That's sometimes a tough pill to swallow, but still a lot of things to be proud of."
Clark averaged 22.3 points per game, third in the WNBA. Her 8.3 assists per game ranked second. In Game 2, she had 27 points and 15 assists, and ESPN reported she became the first player in league history with at least 25 points and 15 assists in a game, regular season or playoffs.
Between Team USA camp, the WNBA season, and the FIBA World Cup, Clark played more basketball this year than she ever had.
"I was able to come out here and put together the best season I've had and perform at a really high level and basically get better in every area and still feel like I have so many areas to improve," Clark said. "So, I guess that's the most exciting part moving forward. I love the work. I love being in the gym. So, I'll probably be kicked out for a little while, but we'll get back to it."
Wilson Puts Tuesday's Incident Behind Her
ESPN reported Wilson is expected to be named league MVP for the fifth time. Tuesday's confrontation is not something she plans to dwell on.
"I prayed a lot. I cried a lot," Wilson explained. "I talked to a lot of different people, and the amount of love that I received today, the amount of Bible verses that I received, it reminded me I'm covered."
"So I can't really worry about anything else," Wilson noted. "I'm grateful to be surrounded by people that could constantly lift me up. Once I put that on the back burner, I had to come up. I had to show up for my team today, and I'm glad we got the win."
Las Vegas will face the winner of Friday's Game 3 between the Golden State Valkyries and Dallas Wings, set for 9 p.m. ET in San Francisco. Dallas forced Game 3 with a 108-100 overtime win Wednesday, when Arike Ogunbowale scored 45 points.
The best-of-five semifinal series opens Sunday. If Golden State wins, the series starts in San Francisco. If Dallas wins, the Aces will host Games 1 and 2.
