LAS VEGAS (AP) \u2014 Not only does Phoenix await the Aces in the WNBA Finals, but so does history. Las\u2026<\/p>\n
LAS VEGAS (AP) \u2014 Not only does Phoenix await the Aces<\/a> in the WNBA Finals, but so does history.<\/p>\n Las Vegas has the opportunity to become champions for the third time in four years, a feat surpassed only by the Houston Comets, who won the league\u2019s first four titles in 1997-2000<\/p>\n The second-seeded Aces, who won championships in 2022 and 2023, open the best-of-seven Finals by hosting the No. 4 Mercury on Friday.<\/p>\n But minutes after getting past No. 6 Indiana 107-98 in overtime<\/a> on Tuesday night, coach Becky Hammon wasn\u2019t ready to think about the potential history the Aces can make.<\/p>\n \u201cI haven\u2019t thought about it,\u201d Hammon said. \u201cWe\u2019re just trying to make it through a quarter at a time. Look, we have a special group here. I\u2019m not surprised that they\u2019re here because I know who they are. I know how they\u2019re built.\u201d<\/p>\n The Aces beat the Mercury in three of their four meetings this season, including both in August when Las Vegas was in the midst of compiling its 16-game winning streak<\/a> to close the regular season. It\u2019s tied with the second-longest streak in league history with the 2014 Mercury.<\/p>\n The Aces are making their fourth Finals appearance in six years. They lost to Seattle in the COVID-19 bubble Finals of 2020, but then defeated Connecticut in 2022<\/a> and New York in 2023<\/a>, securing both clinching victories on the road.<\/p>\n In defeating the Liberty, the Aces became the first team since Los Angeles in 2001-02 to win back-to-back titles.<\/p>\n