The Las Vegas Aces have reached what could be their toughest stretch of the season.
With five games in nine days, the Aces are coming off an 84-83 last-second loss to the Chicago Sky on Saturday before traveling to face the Atlanta Dream on Monday night.
The Dream enter the matchup on a five-game winning streak
after defeating the Seattle Storm 98-89 on Friday night. After edging the Dallas Wings coming out of the All-Star break, Atlanta has continued to establish themselves as a championship contender in playoff-like atmospheres.
Following the loss to Chicago, Aces head coach Becky Hammon was asked what she has noticed about the Dream during this stretch of the season compared with their first meeting in May.
Here’s what she had to say:
Well, just off the top, they’re kind of a come-from-behind group. They came from behind on us. But you’ve been watching them do it all year; no lead is safe. You can never get comfortable. But, quite frankly, I haven’t dug into them yet. I’ve been consumed with just one game at a time.
That time has now come.
Atlanta has moved into fourth in the league standings and owns a 9-5 record at home. As Hammon mentioned, the Dream pushed past their early pains in their first meeting against the Aces on May 17. Although Atlanta ultimately fell 85-84, they took Las Vegas to the limit after a slow start and nearly completed the comeback.
The challenge for the Dream has been maintaining that level of play for all four quarters. If they start fast, they’ve sometimes finished slowly. If they start slowly, they’ve pushed another gear late.
Yet they’ve continued finding ways to win, even when the victories haven’t been pretty. With constant communication and everyone contributing, Atlanta has built a defense that’s beginning to fuel their offensive success.
Dream head coach Karl Smesko said consistency will be the focus against Las Vegas. When Atlanta plays with pace and moves the ball the way they practice, he believes they’re difficult to defend. He explained:
We know what we’re good at. We know when we’re good, and we just got to be relentlessly pursuing that type of basketball. I think our players recognize it.
As for the Aces, they own an 11-4 road record while holding onto the No. 2 spot in the league standings. Their offense remains one of the league’s best and was nearly enough to beat Chicago. Defensively, however, they’ve shown weaknesses late in games, the same period in which the Dream have been at their best.
Still, the Aces hold a 28-18 all-time record against the Dream. Both teams have evolved since their first meeting this season and are searching for greater consistency as they continue their push toward the playoffs.
