Vandersloot records rare triple-double as Sky beat top-seeded Sun in Game 1
Aces hold off Mercury in opening game of 2nd semifinal series
Like a great maestro, Courtney Vandersloot orchestrated one of the best games in WNBA playoff history.
Vandersloot had the second triple-double in the postseason with 12 points, a league playoff-record 18 assists and 10 rebounds to lead the Chicago Sky to a 101-95 double-overtime victory over the Connecticut Sun on Tuesday night in the opener of their best-of-five series.
"She's amazing," Chicago coach James Wade said. "Look at the stat sheet and the way she controlled the game. She was able to control the game from the beginning to the end. She had a special game. One of the best point guard games in playoff history. I'm not surprised because this is what she does."
Vandersloot had no idea that she was close to the historic stats. She was just focused on trying to get the Sky the huge victory.
"It's really special. I didn't know I had the triple-double until the end," Vandersloot said.
WATCH | Sky survive 2 OTs to beat Sun:
Sheryl Swoopes had the only other triple-double in WNBA playoff history, which she did in 2005.
"She's elite. To be with that company, that's obviously special," Vandersloot said. "To do it in the playoffs, I needed 50 minutes to do it."
With the game tied at 93, Candace Parker scored on a layup off a neat pass for Vandersloot's record-breaking assist. Vandersloot, who broke Sue Bird's mark of 16 set last postseason, then threw a beautiful pass to Stefanie Dolson to give the Sky a four-point lead with 1:29 left.
Connecticut couldn't recover, scoring only its second basket of the second OT on Brionna Jones' jumper with 13.7 seconds left that made it 98-95. Vandersloot got her 10th rebound with 7.9 seconds remaining.
"She orchestrates everything out there," Connecticut coach Curt Miller said. "She's so good with the basketball. Huge game for her. We have to look at different ways to disrupt her. That's Slooty. That's what we think about her each and every night, she has the ability to just orchestrate everything."
“Oh my god, I had no idea I had a triple-double.”<br><br>Courtney Vandersloot spoke with <a href="https://twitter.com/sportsiren?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@sportsiren</a> after dropping the second playoff triple-double ever in WNBA history. <a href="https://t.co/f40w0lP6Lv">pic.twitter.com/f40w0lP6Lv</a>
—@espnJonquel Jones, who was honoured as the league's MVP before the game, led the Sun with 26 points and 11 rebounds. Brionna Jones, who earned Most Improved Player honors as well, added 22 points and 10 rebounds for Connecticut, which lost only one game at home during the regular season en route to the league's best record.
This was the league's first double-overtime playoff game since 2015 between the Mystics and Liberty.
"I'm disappointed with the end result, but a great game to start the semifinals," Miller said. "I think there was 14 lead changes, 15 ties. We get a double-overtime game in Game 1. ... Really good game to start for the WNBA."
Both teams had chances to end the game before the second OT. DeWanna Bonner missed an off-balance shot at the end of regulation.
Representation matters
Miller was proud that he could continue to be a role model as the only openly gay man to coach in the WNBA,
"It's part of what my legacy will be. I want to be visible," said Miller, who was honoured as the league's Coach of the Year for the second time in his career. "I want to represent the next wave of gay male coaches that now have someone to look at that you can thrive and be successful and no one can tell you otherwise."
Miller admitted earlier in his career he was more focused on being a successful coach then helping to be a trailblazer.
"I didn't want to be the gay coach," he said. "I wasted some years to be a role model to the next generation of young gay men that are struggling."
Aces top Mercury
In any level of basketball, whether he's played or coached, Bill Laimbeer has always thought guards decide playoff games.
That's exactly what his guards did Tuesday night.
Kelsey Plum scored 20 of her 25 points in the second half, and Riquana Williams scored a game-high 26 to lead the Las Vegas Aces in a 96-90 victory over the Phoenix Mercury in Game 1 of the WNBA semifinals.
Chelsey Grey pitched in with 17 points and 12 assists in the Aces' first home playoff game in two years. Las Vegas reached the WNBA Finals last season while playing in a bubble in Bradenton, Florida.
WATCH | Aces upend Mercury in Game 1:
"I think they were giving different reads on different people, and we were just taking what the defence gave us," Grey said. "The guards have the ball in their hands a lot of the time, especially in transition. We dictate a lot of the game. That's basketball in general, but it really tightens up when it comes to playoff basketball."
Plum, the fourth-year guard who won an Olympic gold medal in 3-on-3 basketball, had 12 points in the third quarter off the bench as Las Vegas pushed its lead into double digits.
"We don't really care necessarily about the numbers, about scoring on the bench," Plum said. "We're really just focused on how we can uplift our team and give us an extra burst going into second and third quarters."
Phoenix, which won single-elimination games against the New York Liberty and defending champion Seattle Storm to reach the semis, led 30-21 after the first quarter.
"We never gave up," Mercury coach Sandy Brondello said. "We kept competing. I don't think we executed as well as we wanted to, but we had a lot of good moments where we played well, and other moments where we couldn't score or we were just giving them what they wanted."
Brittney Griner had 24 points, seven rebounds and six assists for Phoenix. Diana Taurasi, playing in her second game since returning to the lineup after sustaining a sprained ankle, scored 20 points on 6-of-17 shooting.
Taurasi walked to the podium with a walking boot on her left foot, but it was just a precaution.
"Once you're out there, you're out there," Taurasi said. "Once you're this deep into the season, no one's feeling 100% and no one feels great."
