Aces beat Sky in Second Annual Commissioner’s Cup
The Las Vegas Aces defeated the Chicago Sky 93-83 in the second annual Commissioner’s Cup Championship Tuesday evening at Wintrust Arena.
With four players in double figures, the Aces led by as much as 23 points in the wire-to-wire victory. Chelsea Gray earned the MVP honor with 19 points, four rebounds, and five assists.
Teammate Kelsey Plum was happy that Gray received the award because the point guard “doesn’t get the love and credit she deserves.”
“She got snubbed this year. It just sucks because I felt like we deserved five All-Stars, and I know that’s not easy. She’s a competitor, and she leads our team, and when we need plays down the stretch, Chelsea consistently makes big plays. At the end of the day, you can talk about the numbers and this and that, but she wins games, and that to me, should be the most important thing.
The Aces got off to a scorching start with a 13-0 run propelled by the shooting prowess of Plum, who had three treys early in the contest.
“I just felt really open,” Plum said about her early shooting. “We were moving the ball really well, and I just happened to be the beneficiary of a lot of wide-open looks. I came into the game telling myself to be really patient and just let it come, but it came really early.”
Entering the second quarter, the Aces led 33-14 after leading by as much as 22 in the first ten minutes. Chicago chipped away at the lead in the second quarter with an 8-0 run, but the Aces continued to hold the advantage going into halftime, 48-34.
The Sky continued to build momentum as Candace Parker and Rebekah Gardner made some key plays and shots for the home team. The Sky outscored the Aces 26-22 in the third quarter. The teams earned 23 points each in the fourth quarter.
Overall, the Aces shot 50% (37-74) from the field compared to 40.5% (32-79) by the Sky.
Double-doubles for Plum and Parker
Plum led all scorers with 24 points and six assists. Jackie Young and A’ja Wilson were also in double figures for the Aces. Young finished with 18 points plus six rebounds, while Wilson added a double-double of 17 points, 17 rebounds along with six blocks.
Parker paced the Sky with a double-double of her own: 20 points, 14 rebounds, plus four assists. Kahleah Copper and Emma Meesseman had 18 points each. Meesseman also pulled down eight rebounds.
The Aces stay on the road with a five-game swing starting on Friday, July 29, at the Indiana Fever. Chicago remains home to host the New York Liberty on the same day.
Commissioner’s Cup FAQs
This season includes the second annual Commissioner’s Cup. It is an in-season competition that includes 61 games during the regular season with a prize pool of $500,000 plus $165,000 for charitable and civic organizations. The home team is the team with the highest winning percentage in Commissioner’s Cup play.
Coinbase, a cryptocurrency exchange platform, is the sponsor of the Commissioner’s Cup.
The Seattle Storm defeated the Connecticut Sun, 79-57, in the 2021 Commissioner’s Cup championship game.
Full list of charities selected by teams to receive a portion of the $165,000 pool:
- Atlanta Dream: The King Center
- Chicago Sky: My Block. My Hood. My City.
- Connecticut Sun: League of Women Voters of Connecticut
- Dallas Wings: This Is Project Texas
- Indiana Fever: Indiana Black Expo
- Las Vegas Aces: ACLU of Nevada
- Los Angeles Sparks: Human Rights Campaign
- Minnesota Lynx: ACLU of Minnesota
- New York Liberty: A Little Piece of Light
- Phoenix Mercury: Black Mothers Forum
- Seattle Storm: ACLU of Washington
- Washington Mystics: Alliance for Youth Action
The WNBA will donate $2,000 to the chosen organization of each cup game’s winning team and an additional $500 to the losing team’s organization. For the Championship Game, the league will donate $10,000 to the winning team’s chosen organization and $5,000 to the organization of the runner-up.