When going into Game 1, Jackie Young reportedly did not have enough energy to give her best. Aces head coach Becky Hammon highlighted that Young was experiencing “a little bit of fatigue”. In light of that, when Hammon highlighted that Young would be “good to go” for Game 2, no one anticipated her to drop one of her best performances, not just of this postseason, but of this year. As it turns out, Young’s lapse in Game 1 might have helped her get the edge in Game 2.

WNBA analyst and The IX Basketball’s Jackie Powell, along with Alissa Hirsh of the Chicago Sun Times, discussed the Aces’ Game 2 performance right from the basketball court. As the topic of conversation shifted to Jackie Young, Jackie Powell said, “Jackie Young told us that her game one performance was not her best. She did not have her legs. And so, when the Mercury sort of sees that and they guard her well, and they come out and they think, ‘okay, like we were able to hold Jackie and Aj’a pretty all right’. And then it’s like, well, Jackie Young turns it up to what, 11? And maybe what worked for them in game one clearly did not work in game two.”

Jackie Young’s performance in Game 1 most likely gave the Phoenix Mercury squad the impression that their defensive plays worked against the player. After all, for someone to go from scoring 32 points in Game 5 of the Semi-Finals against the Indiana Fever to then later score only 10 says a lot. Plus, they couldn’t accuse Young of a lack of effort, since she shot 3-13 (23.1%) field goals, 0-6 (0.0%) 3-pointers, and 100.0%free throws. Well, if the Mercury squad hadn’t let their guard down, they could have stopped what was to come.

Come Game 2, Jackie Young led the scoring effort for the Las Vegas Aces with her 31 points. In just one game, her field goal percentage jumped from 23.1% to 60%, and her 3-point percentage from 0 to 42.9%. Young scored 21 of her 32 points in the third quarter itself. This allowed her to break the record for most points in a single quarter in WNBA Finals history. According to reports, the 89 and 91 points Phoenix gave up to the Aces marked the most points it allowed any team to score during the playoffs.

In Game 1, the Mercury struggled to guard Dana Evans and let Jewell Loyd go 8-16 from the field. Later, they had no answer for Jackie Young. Phoenix Mercury head coach Nate Tibbetts was not happy. This compelled him to straight-out say in the post-game presser that “We’re here because of our defense, and to give up 89 points in Game 1 and 91 in Game 2…We have to be better at the defensive end”.

No matter how Game 3 and 4 go with the Phoenix Mercury occupying home-court, Game 2 established Young’s presence as a dominant force. Her coach and star teammate couldn’t be happier about it.

Becky Hammon And A’ja Wilson Gave Flowers To Jackie Young After Game 2 Performance

In the aftermath of the 91-78 win, Becky Hammon couldn’t help but reflect on the condition Jackie Young was in during Game 1. To see the transformation in just a few days would have also taken the head coach aback. In light of this, the head coach said, “Last game, (Young) had no legs. No lift. Apparently she went and found some legs because she was cooking today… She’s a bad, bad girl”.

Another star member of the Las Vegas Aces who couldn’t help but gush over the 28-year-old was A’ja Wilson. During Game 2, the 2025 WNBA MVP and Young worked together to drop a combined 60 points. This marks the 2nd most points made by a duo ever in the Finals, right behind the 65 points Jewell Loyd and Breanna Stewart recorded in 2020 with the Seattle Storm. Wilson, who had scored 28 points, was just 2 more points away from recording her 9th 30+ points playoff game, and allowed her and Young to become the first duo to each score 30-plus points in a WNBA Finals Game.

Therefore, during her post-game remarks, Wilson first apologized to Young by saying, “I dropped the ball on that one. Sorry, Jack”. She also teased the 32-point scorer by saying, “I don’t know where Jackie was in Game 1. But I am glad she showed up Game 2.” At the end, the team’s star player had nothing but praise for her teammate.

“Like, she is a perfectionist” said Wilson. “And when you see someone that works so hard, every single day, and then you see the hard work pays off…. paying off, it’s a beautiful thing to witness, and I’m so grateful just to be her teammate, to come to work with her every single day, because I know…. I know that it’s there. I know that Jackie Young’s there”.