Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports/Sipa USA
New York Liberty vs Las Vegas Aces: A possible WNBA Finals preview
In a rematch of the last year’s WNBA Finals, the Las Vegas Aces are hosting the New York Liberty on Saturday at T-Mobile Arena.
The Liberty have the best resord in the league
The New York Liberty are on top of the Eastern Conference with a league-best 22-4 record including 10-3 on the road. They are on a five-game winning streak and are coming off a 103-68 win over the Los Angeles Sparks. New York is the second-best team in the league scoring 86 points per game while shooting 45.3% from the field and 83% from the free-throw line. Sabrina Ionescu leads the team with 19.8 points and 6.1 assists per game.
The defending champions are still the team to beat
The Las Vegas Aces are third in the Western Conference with a 16-8 record, including 8-5 at home. After four consecutive wins, the Aces lost 93-85 to the Chicago Sky in their last game. The Aces are the best offensive team in the league, scoring 88.7 points per game, while shooting 45.4% from the field. A’Ja Wilson leads the team with 27.2 points and 12 rebounds per game, followed by Jackie Young, who averages 18.5 points points per game.
Betting Trends
The Liberty is 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games overall, 4-0 ATS in their last 4 games following a win, 4-0 ATS in their last 4 games following a ATS win, 6-1 ATS in their last 7 games against teams with a winnign record, 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games on the road and 4-12 ATS in their last 16 games against teams from the Western Conference. New York has played under the total point line in 12 of their last 16 games played on Saturday, 8 of their last 11 games on the road and 5 of their last 8 games overall, while has gone over in 5 of their last 6 games against teams from the Western Conference and 6 of their last 9 games following a ATS win. The Aces are 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games played after three or more days of rest, 5-1 ATS in their last 6 home games and 2-5 ATS in their last 7 games played on Saturday. Las Vegas has played over the total point line in their last 7 games following a loss, in 5 of their last 6 games played after three or more days of rest, 10 of their last 13 games following a ATS loss and 11 of their last 17 home games while has played under in 7 of their last 10 games against teams from the Eastern Conference.
Prediction and Conclusion
The Las Vegas Aces won the second consecutive WNBA championship last season, beating the New York Liberty 3-1 in the finals. The Liberty had a tough pill to swallow, but they won the first game against the Aces this season by 90-82. Both teams played very well before the Olympic break, and the Liberty have won nine of their last 10 while the Aces won eight of their last 10. This is a matchup between the top two offensive teams in the league, so we expect a tough battle with a lot of scoring, so we go with over 173.5 points in total.
