Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson registered 27 points, 14 rebounds and blocks, but it was enough to overcome the ejection of coach Becky Hammon in Tuesday’s 97-82 loss to the Atlanta Dream at Michelob Ultra Arena.
Hammon’s ejection occurred midway through the second quarter and appeared to to stem from several uncalled fouls against Atlanta on Wilson, leading to a confrontation between Hammon and an official in front of the Aces’ bench. Hammon was assessed her first technical foul following the exchange.
After realizing she had been issued the technical, Hammon made her way toward half court while being restrained by members of the Aces coaching staff and Wilson. She was then assessed a second technical foul and ejected.
Following Hammon’s dismissal, the Dream turned in a 10-2 run, outscoring Las Vegas 28-16 in the second quarter. The Aces had scored four points in the quarter before Hammon’s ejection.
Forward Angel Reese and guard Allisha Gray led the Dream with 21 points each. They combined for 16 rebounds and seven steals, helping the Dream avoid a season sweep to the Aces with seven regular-season games remaining.
Reese has scored at least 20 points in seven of her last 11 games, including a 23-point, 12-rebound double-double in the teams’ previous meeting in Atlanta.
Despite holding Gray to seven points on Aug. 3, the four-time All-Star shot nearly 50 percent from the field Tuesday, while making two 3-point baskets and dishing out three assists.
The loss ended the Aces’ seven-game winning streak against the Dream. Las Vegas fell to fourth in the WNBA standings, a a half-game behind Indiana and one game ahead of Atlanta.
