‘I Cried a Lot’ — A’ja Wilson Makes Emotional Confession on Facing Backlash Over Heated Game 2 Fan Incident

The Las Vegas Aces are moving on in the 2026 WNBA playoffs. On October 1, the defending champions defeated the Indiana Fever 94-83 in a deciding Game 3, winning the first-round series 2-1. With the Aces now preparing for the semifinals, A’ja Wilson opened up about everything that happened around her controversial moment with a Fever fan in Game 2.

A’ja Wilson’s Comment Regarding the Game 2 Incident With the Fever Fan

After the Game 3 win, Wilson was asked whether the incident from two nights earlier had provided extra fuel for her performance. Rather than saying it directly motivated her, Wilson admitted that the situation affected her because she is human, too.

“I mean, honestly, I have my days. I have my moment because I’m human. But after a while, I understood that I didn’t want that to be a distraction to myself and to my team. And I knew what we had to do coming into tonight. So I put it behind me. I prayed a lot. I cried a lot. I talked to a lot of different people. And the amount of love that I received today, the amount of Bible verses that I received today, it reminded me that I’m covered.”

“So I can’t really worry about anything else. And so I’m so grateful to be surrounded by people that could constantly lift me up. So once I put that on the back burner, I had to come up. I had to show up for my team today. And I’m glad we got the win,” Wilson said during the postgame interview.

The incident happened Tuesday night with around 4:10 left in the fourth quarter. The Fever were leading 90-79 when Wilson drew a foul on Sophie Cunningham. As play stopped, a male fan behind the baseline pointed toward Wilson and appeared to say, “It is on you,” suggesting he believed the foul should have gone against Wilson.

Wilson then walked toward the fan, pointed back, and shouted at him. Her teammates and arena personnel quickly stepped in to separate the two. Wilson was given a technical foul for the confrontation, while the fan was briefly escorted away from his seat.

However, arena security later determined that the fan had not violated the Fan Code of Conduct and allowed him to return. The WNBA also did not issue additional punishment to Wilson, who remained available for Game 3.

With all of that behind her, Wilson did not let this incident affect her performance in Game 3. She finished with 36 points and 10 rebounds while shooting 11-of-18 from the field. Chelsea Gray added 23 points, while Jackie Young contributed 18 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists. Jewell Loyd, who started in place of the injured Stephanie Talbot, added 11 points.

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Wilson’s performance helped Las Vegas close out the series and send Indiana home for the second straight season. The Aces will now turn their attention to the semifinals.

Their next opponent will be the winner of the Game 3 matchup between the Golden State Valkyries and the Dallas Wings. That series is also going to a deciding Game 3, with the winner moving on to face the Aces.