Aces’ issues with size glimpsed in tight win, loss against Wings

Becky Hammon knows all the games can’t be easy. She doesn’t want them to be that way anyway.

The Aces’ coach acknowledged her team was tested by the Dallas Wings twice in the past week. The Aces had to fight back from a 14-point deficit at home Wednesday for an 89-82 win, then lost for just the second time this season 80-78 in Texas on Friday.

“I saw a lot of tentative — a little bit of playing not to lose in the fourth quarter,” Hammon said Friday. “Which is a pretty good way to make sure you lose.”

The Aces (16-2) will look to bounce back as they continue their road trip at 4 p.m. Sunday against the surging Minnesota Lynx (9-9) in Minneapolis. The Aces are 2-0 against the Lynx this season, but Minnesota is on a five-game winning streak.

The Aces entered the past week buoyed by commanding wins against the Eastern Conference’s two best teams, the Connecticut Sun and the New York Liberty, but they have some questions to answer after their trip to Dallas.

Hammon and point guard Chelsea Gray agreed the Aces were bothered by Dallas’ size. Gray said she couldn’t think of a bigger team than the Wings, who start the 6-foot-2-inch Natasha Howard, 6-4 Satou Sabally and 6-7 Teaira McCowan. For context, Aces insider players A’ja Wilson and Candace Parker are listed at 6-4.

Kalani Brown, another 6-7 center who was an Aces training camp invitee before suffering an injury ahead of the 2022 season, lurks on the Dallas bench. She wasn’t available because of a concussion for either of the past two games, but will likely be active when the two teams play again July 30 at Michelob Ultra Arena.

“They attack the paint, they attack the offensive boards, and they still have dynamic guards that can get downhill,” Gray said.

The Aces have dealt with some issues against size in the past. McCowan scored 21 points and grabbed 16 rebounds when the Wings beat the Aces 82-80 in their final meeting of the 2022 season.

McCowan had 14 points in both games against the Aces this past week. She averages 10.7 points per game for her career.

Earlier this year, 6-4 Atlanta Dream All-Star center Cheyenne Parker scored a season-high 25 points in a 92-87 loss to the Aces. Indiana Fever rookie Aliyah Boston, a 6-5 All-Star center, scored 18 and 20 in consecutive games against the Aces during late June.

But Dallas’ size caused the most trouble for the Aces defensively. Coach Latricia Trammell placed Sabally, one of the only wings in the league with a size advantage over Aces All-Star Jackie Young, at the top of a 3-2 zone that caused the Aces fits late in the game.

Hammon said she felt like her team had open looks against the zone late and simply missed, but did credit Dallas for creating five fourth-quarter turnovers.

“They definitely stole a couple of possessions,” Hammon said.

There aren’t many teams built like the Wings in the WNBA, and the Aces have already proved they can beat Dallas this season. However, it will be interesting to watch how the Aces deal with some of the league’s bigger teams going forward as they try to repeat as champions.

Contact reporter Andy Yamashita at ayamashita@reviewjournal.com. Follow @ANYamashita on Twitter.