A simmering rivalry turned a new page on Wednesday, as the No. 5 Las Vegas Aces punctuated their current rise by defeating a short-staffed New York Liberty 83-77, knocking the reigning champs down to No. 3 in the WNBA standings.

"You can't rush a cake to be baked," Las Vegas head coach Becky Hammon said about her team following their fifth straight win.

"We're just steady and poised in the locker room," added Aces guard Chelsea Gray. "In the uncomfortable situations, you figure out who you are as a team."

Las Vegas made key midseason changes after finding themselves teetering on the postseason bubble, moving 2025 addition Jewell Loyd to the bench while shifting to a small-ball starting lineup centered around 2024 MVP A'ja Wilson and recent pick-up NaLyssa Smith.

"She likes it, I guess," Hammon said of Loyd's new role after the guard posted a team-leading 21-point performance on Wednesday. "Anytime you have the threat of 20-plus coming in off the bench, that's a huge advantage."

"That's the beauty of this team," echoed Loyd. "We're very unselfish in that way — we want to see people get going and I just got hot."

While the Las Vegas Aces are gaining momentum, the Liberty are now scrambling, losing their second-place grip on the WNBA table with injured star Breanna Stewart still watching from the sideline.

How to watch the Las Vegas Aces in the WNBA this week

The No. 5 Aces are in for another tough assignment on Friday, when they travel to Phoenix to take on the No. 4 Mercury at 10 PM ET.

Live coverage of the clash will air on ION.

The WSL hit some opening day snags over the weekend, with a last-minute media deal causing broadcasts Stateside to generate confusion and widespread technical difficulties as the UK league's big-name US talent pool took the pitch.

First, in Friday's 2025/26 season kick-off match, ESPN+ served fans an error screen during the first 15 minutes of six-time defending WSL champion Chelsea's 2-1 win over Manchester City.

Then on Saturday morning, skips and lags continuously interrupted Arsenal's 4-1 victory over the recently promoted London City Lionesses.

Notably, the WSL media rights extension deal with ESPN+ — the 2024/25 US carrier of the top-flight UK league —came together at the very last minute.

As such, the WSL left fans in the dark by omitting US coverage details from all promotions in the lead-up to the 2025/26 season's opening weekend — possibly missing out on a big Stateside moment as USWNT stars like Naomi Girma, Catarina Macario, Emily Fox, and Alyssa Thompson kick off their club campaigns in the UK.

"The delays weren't about lack of interest so much as the sheer number of changes the league has been managing," former head of broadcast at WSL Football Andrea Ekblad told The Athletic this week.

"Of course, nobody wants a broadcast deal announced only hours before kickoff. That's not ideal," she continued. "But continuing the [ESPN] partnership makes great sense."

USWNT prospect Jaedyn Shaw is on her way to New York City, with ESPN reporting late Monday that the No. 11 North Carolina Courage is sending the rising NWSL star to No. 6 Gotham FC in an intra-league-record $1.25 million trade deal.

North Carolina's return nearly doubles the NWSL's previous $600,000 transfer record, set when the No. 1 Kansas City Current acquired forward Ally Sentnor from the last-place Utah Royals in early August.

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As for Shaw, this will be her second major move this year, after the attacker requested a trade to the Courage from the San Diego Wave last January — a deal in which the Wave received a combined $450,000 in allocation money and fees.

During her time in San Diego, Shaw shattered the NWSL record for most goals scored by a teenager, but the now-20-year-old has only logged three in her 10 starts for North Carolina this season.

With this trade to Gotham, Shaw will exit a Courage side sitting three spots below the postseason line as North Carolina regroups following the abrupt firing of head coach Sean Nahas.

She instead will join a NJ/NY side in the midst of a serious playoff push, with ESPN reporting that Gotham is going all in on Shaw with plans to sign the young talent through the 2029 season.

The No. 8 Seattle Storm are only one win away from making the 2025 WNBA Playoffs, shooting to oust the No. 9 LA Sparks from the postseason race by claiming a victory over the No. 6 Golden State Valkyries on Tuesday night.

"Our team has changed from the beginning of the season until now," Seattle head coach Noelle Quinn said earlier this week. "Part of that is finding some consistency with one another: minutes, reps, all of those things."

Should the Storm lose to the already-clinched Valkyries in their final 2025 regular-season game, Seattle will still have a shot at the playoffs: The Sparks must still win both of their remaining two games to secure a playoff berth and bounce Seattle from the postseason — starting with their own Tuesday night matchup against the No. 4 Phoenix Mercury.

"[We're] not talking about things we can't control," Sparks head coach Lynne Roberts said over the weekend. "Whether Indiana wins or loses or Seattle, we can't control that. We just have to focus on what we're doing and see how it all shakes out."

How to watch the Storm and Sparks on Tuesday

Both No. 8 Seattle and No. 9 LA will take the court at 10 PM ET on Tuesday, with the Storm battling No. 6 Golden State on WNBA League Pass while the Sparks face No. 4 Phoenix on NBA TV.

Bay FC is shifting gears as the NWSL's 12th-place team's postseason hopes slip away, with the 2024 expansion side announcing a plan to part ways with inaugural head coach Albertin Montoya at the end of the 2025 season.

"I have so much love for these players, staff, and fans," Montoya said in Monday's club release. "We've built a culture and a style of play that I believe will compete for championships for years to come."

Brought on in 2023, Montoya led Bay FC to 11 victories in 2024, setting a league record for wins by an expansion team in its debut season.

Under Montoya, Bay FC also became just the second expansion club to qualify for the NWSL Playoffs in their inaugural campaign, but the team has fallen down the table this year amid accusations of fostering a toxic work environment.

The team also recently lost a high-profile player in Nigerian star Asisat Oshoala, who signed with Saudi Premier League side Al Hilal last week.

Bay Collective CEO Kay Cossington and club sporting director Matt Potter stated that they will work together to hire a replacement for Montoya prior to the 2026 NWSL season.

"Bay FC's startup phase is ending and we're moving to our next phase of growth," Bay FC chair Alan Waxman added in the team's statement.