Aces high on playoff chances
LV breaks Fever to move within half-game of WNBA postseason berth
Aces rookie A’ja Wilson needed to know if the Connecticut Sun beat the Dallas Wings on Sunday afternoon. They did.
But that’s not the point.
The point is that it matters what other teams do now.
It didn’t in May or early June, when the Aces were mired in their inadequacies, toiling for even the smallest of victories during a 1-7 start. But they suddenly find themselves in the thick of a playoff race — albeit for the eighth and final spot — as they head into the WNBA All-star Game break following an 88-74 victory over the Indiana Fever at Mandalay Bay Events Center.
The Aces (12-13) trail Connecticut by a half-game with nine games remaining in the regular season. And they’ve vowed not to let up after having won six of their last seven.
That 1-7 mark has been rectified with toughness, trust and time, guard Kayla Mcbride said.
“We’re learning how to win, and how to win with each other,” she said. “We’re learning how to be a team.”
Wilson posted a game-high 24 points and Mcbride scored 16 against Indiana, the worst team in the WNBA with a 3-22 record. Las Vegas coach Bill Laimbeer was concerned that the Fever could sneak up on his club, which doesn’t play again until Aug. 1.
And they almost did in the first 20 minutes.
But the Aces overcame a slow start and calmed their coach with a dominant second half before a rowdy announced crowd of 5,368.
Wilson bullied her way to the basket, converting 8 of 14 field goals and 8 of 12 free throws. Mcbride was 6-of-12 from the floor, adding six rebounds and
ACES
rookie. He would check on my family every HC and QB meeting we would have! He was a great man! I love you coach!”
“Damn I’m at a loss for words,” tweeted Raiders Pro Bowl tackle Donald Penn. “Coach Sparano taught me so much not just about football about life also.”
The most memorable moment in Sparano’s 19-year NFL coaching career came in 2008, when he was a rookie head coach with the Miami Dolphins, inheriting a team that had gone 1-15 the previous season. In Week 3 he surprised Belichick with a single wing-style formation that the Dolphins called the wildcat, and they won at New England 38-13.
The wildcat became a fad around the league, and the stunning upset propelled Sparano’s team to 11 wins and the AFC East title. It’s one of two playoff berths for the franchise since 2002.
That was Sparano’s lone winning season, and he was fired in 2011 after going 2932 in Miami. He was popular with his players, but a dismal home record, declining attendance and a falling-out with general manager Jeff Ireland accelerated his firing by owner Stephen Ross.
He also worked as an assistant for the Browns, Redskins, Jaguars, Cowboys and 49ers, and most recently for Vikings coach Mike Zimmer.
“I love Tony Sparano,” Zimmer said in a statement. “He was a great teacher, a grinder of a worker and had a toughness and fighting spirit that showed in our linemen. He was a great husband, father and grandfather and a great friend to me. This is just sinking in for us, but Tony will be sorely missed by all.”
Sparano’s former players also paid tribute.
“Heart broken and lost for words! We lost a great man,” tweeted Brian Hartline, who played receiver for Sparano in Miami.
Sparano played at the University of New Haven where he was a four-year letterman. He was hired as New Haven’s head coach in 1994 and held that position for five seasons.
In Miami, Sparano lost his first two games before turning to the wildcat. Six times they ran plays from the formation at New England, snapping the ball directly to
running back Ronnie Brown, and four of those plays resulted in touchdowns.
“It was like playing hide and go seek, making them guess,” Brown said at the time.
Sparano said the Dolphins began practicing the wildcat during training camp but waited until the Patriots game to spring it.
“This is not something that just came up and we scribbled on the board a couple of days ago,” the coach said.
Defenses soon adjusted, and a sputtering offense in Sparano’s final two seasons at Miami contributed to his firing. But the Dolphins haven’t won at New England since the wildcat game.
“We were saddened to learn of Tony Sparano’s tragic and unexpected passing,” owner Ross said in a statement. “Tony made an indelible impact on our team’s history. His toughness, grit and leadership were evident to everyone who had the chance to coach with or play for him.”