New York Liberty vs. Las Vegas Aces Preview, Prediction and Odds - 6/17/21

It’s an interconference battle on the parquet floor as a pair of teams lock up in WNBA action in the Silver State. The New York Liberty are on the road as they travel to face the Las Vegas Aces in the second game of a two-game set Thursday night. When the teams met in the first game of the two-game series Tuesday night, it was the Aces cruising to an easy 100-78 victory to ensure no worse than a split. That extended Las Vegas’ win streak in the series to six games and they have won nine of the last 11 matchups. Will the Liberty regroup and pick up a win on the road or will the Aces continue their recent dominance in the series?

New York Liberty Hoping to Split Two-Game Set

New York lost for the fourth time in five games as they were blown out by Las Vegas in the first game of this two-game set. The Liberty entered Wednesday 6-5 on the season and stood fourth in the WNBA playoff picture though they were only 1.5 games clear of the ninth-place Sky to remain on the right side of the playoff cut line. Against Las Vegas, New York led by four after the opening quarter and held an 11-point lead with 6:33 to play in the first half before things began to unravel. The Liberty were outscored 22-8 the rest of the half to trail by three at intermission before getting outscored 52-33 in the second half en route to the loss. New York shot 47.5% from the field, including nine of 28 from three-point range, but lost the rebounding battle 36-24 while allowing the Aces to shoot 55.6% in the game. Jazmine Jones led the Liberty with 17 points off the bench in the loss.

The Liberty comes into this contest 5th in the league in scoring offense with an average of 81.6 points per game. New York is 11th in rebounding (33 boards a night) and third with 20.6 assists per contest. The Liberty ranks 10th in the league in scoring defense by allowing 86 points per game. Betnijah Laney leads the Liberty with 20.5 points plus 5.5 assists a night this season. Sabrina Ionescu (13.7 points, 6.4 rebounds, 7.1 assists) and Michaela Onyenwere (10.2 points) are also capable scoring options. Sami Whitcomb (10.8 points, 5.1 boards), Natasha Howard (14.5 points), Kylee Shook, Rebecca Allen, Jazmine Jones, Reshanda Gray and DiDi Richards are key contributors for coach Walt Hopkins. New York is 4th in the league in field goal percentage as they shoot 43.9% from the floor as a team. The Liberty is leading the league in made threes per game (11.1) while ranking second in three-point shooting at 39.5%. New York is 7th in free throw percentage as they cash in 80% of their chances at the stripe. Howard is expected to miss four to six weeks with a sprained MCL sustained May 24 against Dallas. Ionescu missed the last two games with left ankle tendinitis and is questionable here.

Las Vegas Aces Seeking Fifth Straight Win

Las Vegas ran their win streak to four and won for the seventh time in the last eight games by rallying to bomb the Liberty. The Aces ran their record to 9-3 on the season and sat second in the WNBA playoff picture, 1.5 games behind the league-leading Storm. In Tuesday’s game, Las Vegas trailed by four after the first quarter and by as many as 11 in the first half before rallying to lead by three at halftime. The Aces led by three with just over four minutes to play in the third quarter before closing the stanza on a 14-4 run to take a 13-point lead. Las Vegas tacked on a 10-2 run to start the fourth quarter to put things out of reach. Las Vegas shot 55.6% from the field, including five of 13 from three-point range, and controlled the glass by a 36-24 margin. Kelsey Plum piled up a career-high 32 points to lead the Aces in the victory.

The Aces come into this contest at the top of the pack in scoring offense, ranking first with 90.2 points per game. Las Vegas is 6th in the league in rebounding (36.3 boards a game) and stand fourth in the league in assists by handing out 20.7 dimes per contest. The Aces have been solid on the defensive end of the floor as they are 4th in the league in scoring defense by allowing 79.8 points a game. A’ja Wilson leads the Aces with 18.7 points, 8.2 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game. Liz Cambage (15.2 points, 8.4 rebounds, 2.1 blocks), Jackie Young (13.8 points, 4.1 rebounds) and Kelsey Plum (12 points) are all solid secondary options on the offensive end. Coach Bill Laimbeer also can call on Chelsea Gray (11.6 points, 6.4 assists), Dearica Hamby (11.8 points, 5.8 boards), Riquna Williams (9.3 points), Ji-Su Park, Emma Cannon and Destiny Slocum to contribute on both ends of the floor. Las Vegas is first in the league in field goal percentage as they shoot 48.5% from the field as a team this season. The Aces are tied for 11th in the league in threes per game (4.6) and sixth in three-point shooting at 34.6% on the year. Las Vegas is currently third in free throw shooting at 84.2% on the season.

Pick: Las Vegas Aces

We saw New York get crushed over the final two-plus quarters in the game Tuesday night and that doesn’t inspire confidence with a quick turnaround against a team that just torched you. The Liberty has sputtered without Ionescu and the loss of Howard, who isn’t due back until mid-July, took a big piece out of the low post. We’ve seen New York have issues on the defensive end of the floor and facing an Aces team that lead the league in scoring offense and field goal percentage makes this a bad matchup. Look for Las Vegas to run their win streak to five games as they beat the Liberty for the third time in as many meetings this season.

Total: Over

Las Vegas flexed their offensive muscle in the game Tuesday night as they hit the century mark for the third time this season. The Aces have scored at least 90 points seven times in their first 12 games and the only team to keep them below 83 points this season was the Sun, who held them to 65 and 67 points in two meetings. New York has given up an average of 86 points a game this season and they surrendered an even 100 in the loss Tuesday night. Las Vegas has seen the over go 7-5 on the season while the Liberty has seen the over hit in eight of their 11 contests. The first two meetings this year saw the teams combine for 176 and 178 points. This game should follow suit and end up going over the total.