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Las Vegas Aces advance to semifinals behind 3-point record

Chelsea Gray reacts after hitting a 3-pointer against the Phoenix Mercury on Saturday night. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

The Las Vegas Aces undid the Phoenix Mercury Saturday, draining a WNBA record 23 3-pointers to charge to a 117-80 victory and advance to the semifinals.

Chelsea Gray led an unstoppable offense, draining seven of her eight attempted 3-pointers to propel her to a game-high 27 points.

Five other Aces finished in the double-figures, including Kelsey Plum, who logged 22 points, sinking four shots from beyond the arc, while A’ja Wilson contributed 17 points behind 77.8 percent shooting. As a team, Las Vegas ended the night at 63.9 percent from 3-point range.

“Right now, as a team, we’re playing our best basketball on both ends,” Gray said after Saturday’s game. “You want to peak at the right time. And for me individually, that’s what I’m feeling.”

Phoenix, with limited resources, crumbled under Las Vegas’ stifling attack. Diamond DeShields tried her best to carry her team, logging 21 points, two assists and two steals, but the Mercury’s trying season proved too much to overcome.

Star Brittney Griner has been wrongfully detained in Russia since February, sentenced to nine years in prison for drug charges. Then, Tina Charles agreed to a contract divorce in June with Phoenix, leaving for the Storm. Diana Taurasi suffered a quad injury, forcing her to miss the end of the regular season and the playoffs, while Skylar Diggins-Smith has been away from the Mercury due to personal reasons.

Things went from bad to worse for the Mercury when Shey Peddy went down in Game 1 of the playoffs, rupturing her Achilles.

“There were a lot of challenges, just really proud of our team and grateful for the opportunity to represent the Phoenix Mercury. They have great fight, great grit. They’re hardy, they’re tough,” Nygaard said. “But we know there’s bigger things in life, too. As hard as our season was, it’s not as hard as BG’s experience right now being in a Russian jail. So, we try to keep all that in perspective.”

The Aces will face the winner of the Seattle Storm and Washington Mystics series in the semifinals of the WNBA playoffs.

UNC Standout Deja Kelly Announces Transfer to Oregon

deja kelly playing for unc
Deja Kelly will take her talents to Eugene this fall. (Eakin Howard/Getty Images)

Deja Kelly has landed on her final destination, with the former North Carolina star announcing her commitment to Oregon on Monday. 

A three-time All-ACC guard, Kelly averaged 15.4 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 3.0 assists per game in her four years in Chapel Hill. She led the team in scoring in each of the last three seasons, but opted to transfer elsewhere for her fifth and final year of NCAA eligibility.

The 5-foot-8 Texas native finishes her UNC career eighth on the team’s scoring list, having helped carry the Tar Heels to a Sweet 16 in 2022

Kelly is the seventh new addition for Oregon Ducks coach Kelly Graves this offseason, as the program faced a number of big name departures at the close of the 2023 NCAA tournament. She will join Texas' Amina Muhammad, Arizona's Salimatou Kourouma, Washington's Ari Long, BYU's Nani Falatea, UC Santa Barbara's Alexis Whitfield, and Siena's Elisa Mevius in Eugene this fall.

Kelly wasn't the only noteworthy transfer shaking up women's college hoops this week, with Marquette's Liza Karlen and Pitt's Liatu King both announcing their commitments to Notre Dame within a span of roughly 18 hours.

San Diego to Face Utah Without Morgan, Girma in Midweek NWSL Match

alex morgan of san diego wave
Alex Morgan has been sidelined with an ankle knock since late April. (Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports)

The San Diego Wave are without some key players, and they don’t expect to get them back anytime soon. 

Alex Morgan, Sofia Jakobsson, Melanie Barcenas, Abby Dahlkemper, and Naomi Girma are all currently on the team’s injury list. On Monday, head coach Casey Stoney was asked if she expected any of them to return to the pitch in the near future. 

"No, unfortunately not," was her response. The Wave is set to play Utah on Wednesday.

While Stoney hasn't yet provided anything else definitive, absences from Morgan and Girma leave behind a pretty big hole in the team roster, particularly with the Olympics — not to mention the preceding USWNT send-off friendlies — just around the corner. Morgan has been sidelined with ankle trouble since the team's late April match against Orlando, while Girma’s first game on the injury list was against Seattle. 

Stoney, however, has said that the Wave doesn’t play any differently with or without the missing players.

"It doesn’t really affect the way we play," she said following the team’s recent loss to Seattle. "We just needed to have more patience. We still had some senior players out there tonight that could have impacted that and needed to impact that and did in the second half."

San Diego currently sits in 10th place with seven points, having won two games in their last five matches.

Angel Reese, Serena Williams Light Up Met Gala Red Carpet

wnba star angel reese at the 2024 met gala
√a. (Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images for The Mark Hotel)

Angel Reese celebrated her 22nd birthday in style, turning out for the Met Gala. 

The Chicago Sky rookie wore a custom dress by British label 16Arlington. Reese is just the second WNBA player to ever grace the Met Gala carpet, following Brittney Griner's appearance last year.

"I’m just excited to see everyone’s outfits. Everyone looks amazing in here. Being here on my 22nd birthday is amazing," Reese told WWD ahead of the event. "I feel beautiful and I feel sexy."

She later took to Twitter, writing that "being able to play the game I love & live my dream in the fashion world all on my 22nd birthday is a blessing."

Reese wasn’t the only women's sports athlete to grace the Met Gala this year. Rolex Women's World Golf Ranking No. 1 Nelly Korda arrived as a guest of Wasserman Media Group chairperson Casey Wasserman, making her the first LPGA golfer to attend the event. Korda wore Oscar de la Renta

Former host and red carpet regular Serena Williams showed up in a gold Balenciaga gown. She reunited with tennis great Maria Sharapova at the event, while sister Venus Williams was also in attendance.

This year's Met Gala theme was "Garden of Time."

Sky Rookie Kamilla Cardoso out “four to six weeks” with shoulder injury

kamilla cardoso just for the ball in a preseason game between chicago sky and minnesota lynx
Cardoso could miss up to 13 games, depending on her recovery timeline. (David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images)

Kamilla Cardoso will not make her regular season WNBA debut with the Chicago Sky for some time, with the Chicago Sun-Times reporting Monday that she's expected to be sidelined for four to six weeks with a shoulder injury. 

The No. 3 overall pick in last month’s WNBA Draft suffered the knock in the team’s preseason game this past Friday. She hasn’t fully participated in practice since, and will await reevaluation while undergoing recovery measures. 

That timeline means that she won't be suiting up for the team’s May 15th season opener, with her potential return estimated around June 17th. Depending on her status, Cardoso might miss up to 13 games total, an absence that could have a serious impact on team development.

Fellow Sky rookie Bryanna Maxwell — drafted by Chicago No. 13 overall this year — will also be out three to four weeks with a knee injury.

"They’re working their butts off to get better and get themselves back into it," Sky head coach Teresa Weatherspoon told Sun-Times reporter Annie Costabile. "This is a long season. We want to make sure we take care of each player."

Cardoso is coming off of an undefeated NCAA national championship run with South Carolina, where she was named the Final Four’s Most Outstanding Player. A two-time national champion, the 6-foot-7 center racked up six points and four rebounds in 13 minutes of Friday's 92-81 loss to the Lynx before exiting the game due to injury.

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