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In what many consider a potential WNBA Finals matchup, the Las Vegas Aces won the second annual WNBA Commissioner’s Cup championship game with a 93-83 victory over the host Chicago Sky on Tuesday at Wintrust Arena.
Kelsey Plum led all scorers with 24 points, while A’ja Wilson (17 points, 17 rebounds, 6 blocks) and Candace Parker (20 points, 14 rebounds) each had double-doubles.
But it was Chelsea Gray who was named the game’s MVP after posting 19 points, 5 assists and 4 rebounds. Gray, the sole Vegas starter not to be named an All-Star and play in the game in Chicago earlier this month, instead experienced her own special moment at Wintrust this week and was embraced by her teammates upon being revealed as MVP.
“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,” Plum said of Gray. “She’s the MVP tonight, but she has been leading our team the whole season. I feel like, to be honest, she doesn’t get the love and credit she deserves, and I’m really, really glad that people saw that tonight.”
Despite Tuesday’s loss, the defending WNBA champion Sky (21-7) remain in first place in the WNBA standings and the Aces (20-8) in second with less than three weeks remaining in the regular season. The teams, the only two to clinch playoff spots so far, have topped the standings most of the season.
Each player on the Aces was awarded $30,000, with Gray taking home an extra $5,000 for being named MVP. Each Sky player earned $10,000. Coinbase, the presenting sponsor of the Cup, is also awarding an additional cryptocurrency bonus of $5,000 for each player in the championship game.
The Cup also featured $165,000 donated to charities across all 12 franchise markets.wnba