WNBA Finals 2025: Aces sweep Mercury to win third title in past four seasons; A'ja Wilson named series MVP

The Las Vegas Aces were lost in the shuffle of a crowded WNBA race this summer. Now they’re league champions for the third time in the past four seasons.

After finishing the regular season on a 16-game win streak, the Aces pulled off thrilling series wins over the Seattle Storm and Indiana Fever before sweeping the Phoenix Mercury 4-0 in the WNBA Finals on Friday.

The Aces are the seventh team in the W with at least three championships; two of those teams — the Houston Comets and Detroit Shock — are no longer in existence.

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A’ja Wilson became the first WNBA or NBA player to win the scoring title, regular-season MVP, Defensive Player of the Year and Finals MVP in the same season.

She totaled 31 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 blocks and 2 steals in a 97-86 Game 4 victory.

Wilson entered the night with the most points of any player in a WNBA postseason, and she showed why in the first quarter, during which she stacked 12 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal and 1 block.

The four-time WNBA MVP willed the Aces to a nine-point lead heading into the second frame.

Whether it was her and-1 through Kalani Brown, her block of DeWanna Bonner or her steal and fastbreak give-and-go score with Jewell Loyd, Wilson looked in total command.

Long-range shooting and ball security made the difference in the first half.

After setting a WNBA Finals record with nine first-half 3s in Game 3, the Aces did the exact same thing in Game 4, shooting 9 of 17 from deep over the first two quarters. Meanwhile, the Mercury shot a mere 2 of 11 from 3-point land during that span.

Las Vegas committed just one first-half turnover and scored 15 points off nine Phoenix giveaways in the first 20 minutes of action.

It was a frustrating stretch for the Mercury, who appeared to lose their best player right before halftime. With 9.2 seconds to go in the second period, six-time All-Star forward Alyssa Thomas hit the deck in pain after running into an illegal screen set by Loyd. Thomas notably plays with labral tears in each of her shoulders and appeared to clutch her right shoulder as she fell to the floor Friday.

That sequence made Phoenix’s 16-point halftime deficit feel even more insurmountable, especially considering the Mercury were already missing fellow All-Star forward Satou Sabally.

But then one-time WNBA Finals MVP Kahleah Copper scored 13 points in a roller-coaster third quarter that started with Thomas surprisingly returning to the floor and included an even more shocking development. Phoenix head coach Nate Tibbetts was assessed a double technical and ejected after arguing a reach-in call with 2:41 remaining in the period. Although Tibbetts got in the face of the official, he didn’t appear to make contact with her.

Visibly confused, Tibbetts was escorted off the floor. His team played hard for him the rest of the way.

The Mercury strung together an 8-0 run in the fourth quarter that cut the Aces’ lead to six, in part thanks to another Copper and-1 and a basket inside from Brown. Transition offense was the key for a Phoenix team that came back from 17 down in the fourth quarter of Game 3 to set up an all-time finish that Wilson authored with a fadeaway game-winner.

A Chelsea Gray 3-pointer, however, gave the Aces some breathing room.

Eventually, Copper, who scored 30 points in the loss, fouled out with 1:30 to go, and she received a technical on her way to the bench. That gave Las Vegas a chance for three free throws, which the Aces made to restore a double-digit advantage.

While Thomas polished off her third WNBA Finals triple-double, Las Vegas wound up icing the game, and its latest championship.

Here’s how Game 4 of the 2025 WNBA Finalsplayed out:

WNBA Finals 2025: Aces sweep Mercury to win third title in past four seasons; A’ja Wilson named series MVP

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