LAS VEGAS — Call it the duel in the desert. The Las Vegas Aces and Phoenix Mercury will meet in the 2025 WNBA Finals.

The franchises, located roughly 300 miles apart, have both won multiple titles but have never met in the championship series before.

The No. 2 seed Aces outlasted the No. 6 seed Indiana Fever 107-98 in overtime Tuesday in Game 5 of their semifinal series. Now they host the Mercury on Friday in Game 1 (8 p.m. ET, ESPN). Phoenix, the No. 4 seed, eliminated the No. 1 seed Minnesota Lynx 3-1 on Sunday.

The Aces, led by four-time MVP A’ja Wilson, won WNBA titles in 2022 and 2023. The Mercury’s championships were in 2007, 2009 and 2014, all with Diana Taurasi as the team’s star. She retired after last season, and a retooled roster — led by triple-double standout Alyssa Thomas — has Phoenix back in the Finals for the first time since 2021.

The WNBA Finals will be a best-of-seven format for the first time, so this could be a history-making series. Here is a breakdown of how the teams match up.

Regular-season series: Las Vegas went 3-1 against Phoenix

June 15: Mercury 76, Aces 70 (at Las Vegas)
June 29: Aces 84, Mercury 81 (at Phoenix)
Aug. 15: Aces 86, Mercury 83 (at Phoenix)
Aug. 21: Aces 83, Mercury 61 (at Las Vegas)

How Phoenix got here

The Mercury lost Game 1 at home in the best-of-three first round and on the road in the best-of-five semifinals, so they’ve proved their mettle away from home and in elimination games.

After a 13-point loss in Game 1 of the semifinals against Minnesota, Phoenix won each of the next three games by single digits, dominating in the fourth quarter in each. In Game 2, the Mercury overcame a 20-point deficit to tie the record for largest road comeback in WNBA playoff history. The Game 3 win at home will most likely be remembered for the controversial final 22 seconds, but also featured another big Mercury finish. In Game 4, Phoenix started cold, trailing by 14 in the first quarter and by 13 entering the final frame, before pulling out the 86-81 victory.

How Las Vegas got here

Las Vegas was .500 at the All-Star break before riding a 16-game winning streak into the playoffs. That hot streak extended to 17 with a Game 1 win in the first round — but then the Aces lost three of their next six postseason games before Tuesday’s overtime win clinched a spot in the Finals. Las Vegas beat Seattle 2-1 in the best-of-three first-round series, then had to go the distance to eliminate No. 6 Indiana in the best-of-five semis.

On Tuesday, Wilson recorded her WNBA-record third career 35-point game in a series-clinching win. The four-time MVP also became the first player with 35 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists in a playoff game.

What we’re hearing about the Aces

Considering their long winning streak, Las Vegas was the hottest team coming into the playoffs. But they struggled to close out both of their playoffs series so far.

They were nearly upset by No. 7 seed Seattle in the first round, pulling out a Game 3 victory 74-73. Then it took overtime in Game 5 of the semifinal for them to get past Indiana, despite the Fever being depleted by injury and foul trouble.

This is something to be concerned about going against the Mercury, who seem to be peaking in the playoffs. That said, the Aces have a great deal of WNBA Finals experience to rely upon: Both Chelsea Gray and Wilson have been Finals MVPs for the Aces. Jackie Young also has been a crucial part of Las Vegas’ past championships. Jewell Loyd won two WNBA titles when she was with Seattle.

It took about 2½ months for the Aces to figure themselves out this season. Once they did, they were formidable the rest of the regular season. They now have a few days before the Finals to get a handle on where they’ve fallen short in the playoffs despite advancing, because they can’t have the same kind of lapses against Phoenix. — Michael Voepel

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Phoenix Mercury reach Finals after taking down Minnesota Lynx

The Phoenix Mercury come from behind to beat the Minnesota Lynx in Game 4 to reach the WNBA Finals.

What we’re hearing about the Mercury

Rebuilds usually take years to be successful, but in their first season without Taurasi and Brittney Griner, the franchise’s two former cornerstones, the Mercury are headed back to the Finals for the first time since 2021.

Embracing an underdog mentality has fueled the Mercury throughout the season. Phoenix returned just two players from 2024 — Kahleah Copper and Natasha Mack — and is the fifth team in league history to lose at least 70% of its scoring from the previous season (71.3%), according to ESPN Insights. The other four teams all had losing records the following season.

With two of their big three — Copper and Satou Sabally — missing extended time in the regular season because of injury, Phoenix wasn’t fully healthy until late July. At the start of August, Sabally told ESPN she felt her team was playing at 80% of its capability. The Mercury hoped that through the last month of the regular season they’d meld all of their pieces together. They did.

Their rookies — Kathryn Westbeld, Sami Whitcomb and Monique Akoa Makani — were revelations. The addition of DeWanna Bonner in early July provided their bench with needed experience. And their big three have thrived together.

They were underdogs again as they entered the postseason, facing defending champion New York in the first round and this year’s title favorite, Minnesota, in the semifinals. The Mercury are the fourth team in WNBA history to eliminate both teams that participated in the previous year’s Finals within a single postseason. — Kendra Andrews

What is this series’ X factor?

The team whose big three plays the best will win the title.

So often in championship games or series, we look for one unsung hero, one seemingly unforeseen moment that will decide the outcome. This series won’t be that complicated or unpredictable. It will come down to the performances of Wilson, Young and Gray for the Aces and Thomas, Sabally and Copper for the Mercury. Sure, there might be a big Sami Whitcomb 3-pointer, or a stretch where Dana Evans supplies the Aces some extra energy — but this is about the stars.

Their impact was on display in both Las Vegas’ and Phoenix’s semifinal close-out games. Wilson (35), Young (32) and Gray (17) combined for 84 of the Aces’ 107 points; Thomas (23), Sabally (21) and Copper (13) were the Mercury’s three leading scorers in their comeback win over Minnesota in Game 4. The advantage will go to the trio that separates itself, even if it’s by a small margin.

Throw out the first time these teams met in the regular season (a Mercury win) because Wilson did not play. In the final three meetings, the MVP was the best player on the floor, averaging 25.0 points. Young scored in double digits in each of those games and Gray had at least nine. Conversely, in one Phoenix loss, Sabally had just 10 points on 3-of-14 shooting. In the most recent matchup, Copper had just six points. Las Vegas won all three of those games. The Aces will win their third title in four years if that recent history repeats itself. — Charlie Creme

How big is Phoenix’s rest advantage after Las Vegas had to go to overtime to win Game 5 on Tuesday?

I don’t think it will be much of a factor. Las Vegas will still get two full days off without any travel. While the Aces will sleep well after going the distance against the Fever, they will be doing it in their own beds. Even with the extra two days to prep, the Mercury still had to wait to find out their opponent. The rest might help a little, but 48 more hours at this time of year probably means little. Adrenaline is overcoming any fatigue for most of these players, and both teams have all their regular rotations fully healthy heading into the best-of-seven series. — Creme

How they match up

While only two players returned from last season’s Mercury team (Copper and Mack), the Aces have six players back from last season, and five of them — Wilson, Gray, Young, Kiah Stokes and Kierstan Bell — were also on Las Vegas’ 2022 and 2023 title teams.

During the regular season, the Aces and Mercury were close to each other in categories such as scoring average (83.6 and 82.8), net rating (plus-3.7 and plus-3.4) and effective field goal percentage (50.6 and 50.2). Same for 3-pointers per game, although the Mercury had the slight edge there with 9.4 to the Aces’ 9.1.

There was a little more separation with defensive rating, as the Mercury were at 102.5 and the Aces 104.4. In the past, the Aces have been a better defensive team than they have been this year, but Las Vegas has improved in that area since its season turnaround began in early August.

As for the teams’ two biggest stars, Wilson and Thomas have faced off 26 times in their WNBA careers, counting both regular season and playoffs. Wilson has a 17-9 edge overall, 6-3 in the playoffs. Wilson has averaged 21.0 points, 10.1 rebounds and 2.8 blocks in those playoff matchups against Thomas, who has averaged 15.4 points, 8.4 rebounds and 5.1 assists.

The teams’ coaches, Las Vegas’ Becky Hammon and Phoenix’s Nate Tibbetts, both spent several years as NBA assistants before taking over as WNBA head coaches. Hammon was a San Antonio Spurs assistant from 2014-2022, and Tibbetts was an assistant from 2011-2023 with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Portland Trail Blazers and Orlando Magic. — Voepel

Bayern Munich winger Michael Olise is being targeted for a return to the Premier League, while both Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid are monitoring Kobbie Mainoo‘s situation at Manchester United Join us for the latest transfer news and rumors from around the globe.

Transfers homepage | Done deals | Men’s grades | Women’s grades

TOP STORIES

– Atlético’s Álvarez on Barça links: ‘People talk’
– Bernardo decides Man City future remains coy
– Sources: Thorns trade Japans Sugita to Angel City

TRENDING RUMORS

– Clubs in the Premier League are interested in Bayern Munich winger Michael Olise, according to Bild. It is reported that the 23-year-old is being tracked by clubs in England, who would be willing to propose an offer to the Bundesliga champions worth €100 million to secure him. Olise, previously linked with Liverpool as a potential successor to Mohamed Salah, scored his fourth goal of the season on Tuesday during the 5-1 Champions League victory over Pafos.

– Multiple clubs in Europe are monitoring the situation of Manchester United midfielder Kobbie Mainoo, the Daily Mail reports. Napoli are reportedly one of the sides linked with the 20-year-old England international, and there is belief that he was keen to join them on loan in the summer to join up with former United teammate Scott McTominay. However, Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid are now tracking him, with plans to enter the race for his signature if he doesn’t begin to earn more regular playing time at Old Trafford.

– Chelsea have dismissed interest from Real Madrid in midfielders Enzo Fernández and Moisés Caicedo, Football Insider reports. The Blues are said to be unwilling to listen to any offers for either of their two holding midfielders, who have caught the attention of scouts from Los Blancos, with both viewed as key parts of the club’s long-term project. Caicedo, 23, remains contracted at Stamford Bridge until the summer of 2031, while 24-year-old Fernández’s is due to expire the following year. Both started in Tuesday’s 1-0 Champions League win over Benfica.

– A new enquiry has been made by Bayern Munich on Juventus striker Dusan Vlahovic, according to Corriere dello Sport. Initial talks have been held by the Bundesliga champions, who are planning to meet with the 25-year-old Serbia international’s representatives to discuss a switch to the Allianz Arena. The Bianconeri aren’t expected to part ways with him in January, which will see the race for him gather pace next summer. Vlahovic has recently been linked with Chelsea and Manchester United.

– Scouts from Tottenham Hotspur are monitoring FC Porto striker Samu Aghehowa, TEAMtalk reports. The Premier League side are believed to have started the initial “groundwork” amid plans to sign a long-term solution up front, with the 24-year-old one of the latest names to be placed on their shortlist. Aghehowa, previously linked with Newcastle in the summer, has scored five goals in six league matches so far this season, and he has been capped twice by Spain at senior international level.

EXPERT TAKE

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OTHER RUMORS

– Barcelona sporting director Deco has revealed that Manchester City enquired in the summer about the availability of defender Jules Koundé, who has since signed a new contract with Barça until 2030. (Mundo Deportivo)

– AC Milan are keen for USMNT winger Christian Pulisic to sign a contract extension, with his current deal expiring next summer. (Calciomercato)

– Barcelona remain “open” to signing on-loan Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford on a permanent deal. (Telegraph)

– Tottenham Hotspur are plotting a move for Brentford and Republic of Ireland international defender Nathan Collins. (TBR Football)

– Barcelona will take time before making a decision on whether to sign defender Andreas Christensen to a new deal. (Marca)

– Juventus and several clubs in Europe are interested in Lille midfielder Ayyoub Bouaddi, who they regard as similar in style to AC Milan’s Adrien Rabiot. (Tuttosport)

– Real Betis are prepared to offer Spanish midfielder Isco a one-year contract extension to remain at the club until June 2028. (Estadio Deportivo)

– Villarreal are keeping tabs on the situation of Strasbourg midfielder Valentin Barco. (Mundo Deportivo)

– Celtic are keen to keep hold of forward Daizen Maeda in the January transfer window. (Football Insider)

– There are concerns among the Manchester United hierarchy that head coach Ruben Amorim could resign. (The i Paper)

– No talks have taken place between former Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp and Al Ittihad despite reports. (Fabrizio Romano)

– There are no current plans by Chelsea to part ways with manager Enzo Maresca. (Fabrizio Romano)

– Bournemouth are set to “ramp up” discussions over a new contract with manager Andoni Iraola amid interest from Manchester United. (talkSPORT)

The Virginia Tech board of visitors overwhelmingly approved a plan to add $229 million to its athletics budget over the next four years.

The decision moves Virginia Tech among the top of its ACC peers in funding, at a time when the Hokies are searching for a new head football coach to replace Brent Pry, who was fired earlier this month.

School president Tim Sands said the decision “unlocks the door to future success.”

“We have the opportunity to reset the organization to align with the new realities at the conference and national levels. It’s never been clearer that the future of Hokie athletics will depend on the institutional commitments to compete in partnership with our alumni and supporters. Today, we are stepping up to compete, and we ask our loyal fans and generous donors to step forward with us.”

The decision will add $47.1 million to the budget in the current fiscal year, bringing the total athletics department budget to $190.1 million. That number would increase to $212.1 million for 2029-30.

Sands also announced he will be appointing an athletics investment oversight committee to monitor spending to “ensure that funds are spent wisely.”