The Las Vegas Aces dominated the Portland Fire with a 105-89 win and picked up their fifth straight win. A’ja Wilson notched 6000 career points in record time, and Chelsea Gray had a historic night with 9 three-pointers to set a team record. But ultimately, the stellar performance was the result of a slight tactical reset from the Aces as the defending champions keep on evolving.

According to The Sporting Tribune, Becky Hammon’s rotation pattern this season has been to use Wilson exclusively in the third quarter, then sit her out for the first few minutes of the fourth. But against Portland Fire, they didn’t have the leverage to do that.

“Becky probably can talk more about it,” Wilson said when asked about it in the post-game presser, according to Nekias Duncan of Yahoo Sports. “But she did pull me aside and was just thinking how I wanted to go. And I’m somebody who’s like, I wanna play all day, like I haven’t played forever.

“So, please keep me on the court. But I also understand from a coach’s standpoint, you don’t want to run anyone into the ground. So, yeah, we had a conversation, and she can tell you more about it. But definitely it was one of those situations where I’m like, just go with it.”

The Aces entered the fourth with a 6-point lead. Keeping Wilson on court ensured they wouldn’t squander it. So, Hammon did exactly that. And the rotational change worked. The Las Vegas Aces scored an impressive 27 points in the final frame of the game while also restricting the Fire to 17.

A’ja Wilson’s defensive pressure forced the Fire into turnovers, extending the lead to 16 and eventually clinching a 105-89 win. Wilson finished her night with 32 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists.

The four-time MVP went 10 of 20 from the field and just 1 of 2 from beyond the arc. Wilson orchestrated the offense, running pick-and-roll sets that Portland couldn’t defend while players like Stephanie Talbot and Nalyssa Smith dominated on the glass with 10 rebounds each. She even became the fastest WNBA player to score 6000 career points, according to Sports Illustrated.

Meanwhile, Wilson’s teammate, Chelsea Gray, recorded a career-high 29 points to complement her perfectly.

“I had a couple of games where I was, ‘OK, I’m hitting them in practice, but not here.’ But you know, this is just about trusting the work,” Gray said when asked about her three-point scoring spree, as per ESPN.

Overall, it was quite an impressive game from the Las Vegas Aces. They had a better three-point shooting night (50% against Fire’s 31%) and also outrebounded them 42-19. But at the end of the day, it was that decisive fourth quarter that changed the tide of the game.

After dropping two fourth quarters in two losses this season against the Los Angeles Sparks and the Phoenix Mercury, they needed to get this one to avoid a fourth defeat.

Becky Hammon Sheds Light on Her Decision Behind the A’ja Wilson Fourth Quarter Rotational Change

It’s important to understand that A’ja Wilson doesn’t just give the Las Vegas Aces a formidable scoring option. Of course, she is good in that role, leading the league with 26.4 points per game, as per WNBA.com. But she is also one of the league’s most elite defenders.

On the flip side, Wilson also leads the league in blocks (2.4 per game). And that defensive tenacity is exactly the reason why Becky Hammon wanted Wilson to start the fourth quarter.

“I don’t know if it’ll be long term? I just wanted her out to start the fourth quarter, and I thought we’ve struggled starting fourth quarters, that first two to three minutes,” Hammon said.

“Teams have been hurting us. That’s why we’ve been losing a lot of fourth quarters. We just get off to a bad start. So, I just wanted to switch the lineup a little bit and get more of a defensive team to start the fourth.”

Becky Hammon’s assessment does have merit. In the last six games, the Las Vegas Aces have been outplayed four times. It’s a recurring concern they had to deal with for quite a bit in the season. But with Wilson, they can always rest their faith in her to keep that concern in check.

Notably, with this win, the Aces are 9-3 so far this season, sitting second in the Western Conference. They will face the Minnesota Lynx up next on June 13 at the Michelob Ultra Arena.