The events are packaged together as a separate competition beginning at 4 p.m. Friday at Mandalay Bay Events Center. ESPN will televise the contests live.
Sam Gordon
Reporter
Email: sgordon@reviewjournal.com
X: @BySamGordon
Sam Gordon was born and raised in Minneapolis and is back for his second stint with the Review-Journal. He’s covered the NFL, NBA, the Big Ten, the Mountain West and prep sports for various publications during his professional tenure. Gordon, a University of Minnesota graduate, is a basketball junkie who coached high school basketball for three seasons.
The All-Star guard suffered through losing seasons in her first five years in the league, but the Aces are 13-6 at the break and she’s having a blast on the court.
The game, matching Team Wilson vs. Team Delle Donne, will be played at 12:30 p.m. Saturday at Mandalay Bay Events Center.
The 27-year-old will play a set Friday night with recording artists Snoop Dogg and Iggy Azalea at Mandalay Bay’s beach party as part of WNBA All-Star weekend.
The WNBA All-Star Game will be played in Las Vegas for the first time in league history, bringing the best players together for a celebration of community and basketball.
The league is congregating at Mandalay Bay Events Center for the All-Star Game and corresponding festivities, including a 3-point shooting contest and skills challenge.
Aces guard Kayla McBride will compete in the WNBA 3-point contest on Friday afternoon at Mandalay Bay Events Center, the league announced Wednesday.
Las Vegas coach Bill Laimbeer was supposed to coach Team Delle Donne while Washington coach Mike Thibault was scheduled to coach Team Wilson. But the two made an informal agreement to switch ahead of the draft, and the rest of the league’s coaches backed it — prompting Delle Donne to propose the swap.
Dearica Hamby started in place of injured star A’ja Wilson and scored 24 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead Las Vegas.
Laimbeer said Sunday after a 79-74 win over the Minnesota Lynx that they’ll likely predicate their offense more around ball movement without Wilson, who averages 15.8 points on 12.3 shots, 6.7 rebounds and commands considerable defensive attention as one of the WNBA’s most dominant post players.
Liz Cambage had 22 points and 13 rebounds Sunday afternoon and Kayla McBride scored 20 to propel the Aces — sans injured All-Star A’ja Wilson — to a 79-74 win over the Minnesota Lynx at Mandalay Bay Events Center.
Manny Pacquiao defeated Keith Thurman by a 113-114, 115-112, 115-112 split decision Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden to win the WBA welterweight title.
The WNBA club didn’t provide a timetable for the return of the second-year forward, who is averaging a team-high 15.4 points to go with 6.6 rebounds this season.
Las Vegas star A’ja Wilson injured her left leg after colliding with Liz Cambage in the third quarter of a 69-66 road loss to the Seattle Storm on Friday night.
The 30-year-old has unveiled an uncanny bravado, buoyed in part by an undefeated professional record and five successful defenses of his WBA welterweight championship.