‘21 turnovers. Think about that’: Aces’ lead dissolves in loss to Lynx

Eleven games into the season, the Aces have yet to put together an effort that looks entirely convincing from the opening tip until the final buzzer.

It was a week ago that coach Becky Hammon said the Aces were “still searching” for a full 40-minute game.

“It’s like a damn unicorn,” she lamented.

Following a 76-62 loss to the Minnesota Lynx on Tuesday at Target Center in Minneapolis, that statement remained true — and she nearly repeated it verbatim in multiple answers as she addressed reporters.

The Aces opened the game with an 8-0 run that converted to a 39-30 lead at halftime. Then the second half began, and the Lynx scored 10 uninterrupted points.

By the end of the third quarter, the Aces had been outscored 26-13. The offense got even worse in the final frame, as the Aces scored just 10 points.

The Aces (5-6) are now 1-4 in their past five games.

“If I knew how to make sure and ensure that the same quality came out in the third quarter — the start of the third quarter, specifically — I would make sure that happens,” Hammon said. “But for whatever reason, we come out of the locker room a completely different team. And not in a good way.”

Still without Wilson

Jewell Loyd’s 12 points led the Aces in their third straight game without reigning WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson, who remains in concussion protocol.

Hammon said pregame that she’d like Loyd to take 14 to 17 shots per game. She took 12 against the Lynx, which was only rivaled by Jackie Young’s 13 attempts.

Courtney Williams had a game-high 20 points for the Lynx (11-1). MVP front-runner Napheesa Collier exited the game in the third quarter with seven points and did not return.

Tiffany Mitchell made her second start in Wilson’s absence and recorded a season-high 10 points, eight coming in the first half.

“Just being available,” Mitchell said of what worked. “We’re down (Wilson) and I’m at the four, so I’m just trying to do what I can. Pick my spots, still be aggressive and stay true to who I am, but within the system.”

The Aces’ defense held Minnesota to 1-of-13 shooting in the first half. Reserve forward Diamond Miller took the lid off from beyond the arc with back-to-back buckets to cut the Lynx’s deficit to 37-30 with 57 seconds remaining in the second quarter.

Without Collier, Miller and Natisha Hiedeman combined to give the Lynx 24 bench points, while the Aces’ reserves contributed 15 points.

Turnover problems

After giving up a season-high 22 turnovers in Sunday’s 76-70 loss to the Phoenix Mercury, the Aces didn’t secure the ball any better against the league’s best team.

They ended the first quarter with three straight turnovers but still managed to come out of the period with an 18-15 lead as Kierstan Bell came off the bench to hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer.

By the end of the game, the Aces had committed 21 turnovers.

“We just have these huge lapses offensively,” Hammon said. “Twenty-one turnovers. Think about that. You’re turning the ball over every other minute… That’s a lot of possessions. It’s hard to manipulate those numbers.”

Kiah Stokes matched her season-high with seven points, including a corner 3-pointer to beat the shot clock and put the Aces up 30-19 for their biggest lead of the game. In the third quarter, she gave the Aces their first and only fast-break points of the game off an assist from point guard Chelsea Gray. Matching her season high, Gray finished with six assists and added nine points.

“I think we’ve just got to make decisions a little sooner,” Stokes said of the ball security issue. “You know, a few times our guards are great at getting into the paint. But I think sometimes we just take that extra dribble and then it’s just too crowded. The bigs, myself, we have to do a better job of cutting and being more of an outlet for when our guards penetrate, to have some (easier) dishes.”

Contact Callie Fin at cfin@reviewjournal.com. Follow @CallieJLaw on X.