LAS VEGAS — Chelsea Gray had 27 points and eight assists and hit a career-high seven of Las Vegas’ WNBA playoff-record 23 3-pointers and the Aces beat the Phoenix Mercury 117-80 on Saturday night to sweep the best-of-three series.
Las Vegas, which never trailed, also set WNBA playoff marks for consecutive field goals made to open a game (10) and most 3-pointers in a half (11, in the first). The top-seeded Aces beat Phoenix 79-63 on Wednesday.
Las Vegas will play the fourth-seeded Seattle Storm or the fifth-seeded Washington Mystics in the best-of-five semifinals. Seattle leads the best-of-three series with the Mystics 1-0.
Kaela Davis led short-handed Phoenix with 23 points. Phoenix was without Diana Taurasi, Skylar Diggins-Smith and Brittney Griner. Taurasi was out with a quadriceps strain, Diggins-Smith stepped away last week for personal reasons and Griner is being detained in Russia on drug charges.
SKY 100, LIBERTY 62
CHICAGO — Kahleah Copper scored 20 points and Courtney Vandersloot added 16 to help Chicago to a record rout to force a decisive Game 3 on Tuesday night in New York.
Candace Parker added 12 points, 12 rebounds and four assists for the Sky. They broke their own WNBA record for largest margin of victory in the playoffs. Chicago won by 36 at home in Game 3 of the Finals against the Phoenix Mercury last year en route to the title.
Han Xu and Michaela Onyenwere each scored 10 points for New York.