"Gainbridge is about to be freaking loud and packed": Sophie Cunningham sends fiery warning to Aces ahead of high-pressure Game 3

Indiana Fever star guard Sophie Cunningham has warned the Las Vegas Aces to expect a long 40 minutes at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Game 3 of the best-of-five semifinals playoff series on Friday night.

The Fever need two more wins to make history if they are to keep their chances of advancing to the WNBA Finals, but they are not giving up.

Each team has traded blowout wins in the series, with the Fever taking Game 1 on the road, 89-73, while the Aces responded with a 90-68 win in Game 2.

Sophie Cunningham has been a vocal figure since her arrival to Indiana, but her season was cut short with a season-ending injury. Ahead of the crucial Game 3, the star guard said the pressure is on the Aces to win at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, a venue notorious for its hostile atmosphere.

“Everyone's just going to be more aggressive, and it's going to be fun. I know that Gainbridge is about to be freaking loud and packed, and it is so fun and so hard to play here, so all the pressure's on them," Cunningham said on her podcast.

It is the first time in 10 years that the Fever have reached the semifinals. The last time they managed the feat was in the 2015 season, when they beat the Chicago Sky before losing the final to the Minnesota Lynx.

By contrast, the Aces have now reached the semifinals seven times since 2019. Their stellar run included back-to-back championships in 2022 and 2023.

Sophie Cunningham’s wary of Aces’ threat in honest assessment

At the same time, Sophie Cunningham is under no illusion that the Fever can stroll toward win. The 29-year-old lavished enormous praise on the Aces and Becky Hammon.

Sophie Cunningham acknowledged the strength the Aces possess when talking about what went wrong for the Fever in the Game 2 on her podcast.

“Our attention to detail and our sense of urgency, like with the ball, to get in our offense, and to get in our defense, and to get in our schemes, all of that, was from the jump, and it punched them in the mouth early, where in the last game (Game 2) we were just on our heels, and we were too slow, like we weren't quick enough from the jump,” Cunningham said.

“So I guess a team that's like that, who does have the MVP, who has great players on their team, a bunch of all-stars, a great coach in Becky, like you just can't, because otherwise it's just so hard to come back.”

The Aces are blessed with a wide range of players, from four-time MVP A’ja Wilson to multiple All-Stars like Jackie Young, Chelsea Gray, Kiah Stokes, and Jewell Loyd. Throughout the series, their success has been built on an extremely aggressive style of playing.

Meanwhile, the Fever have suffered multiple season-ending injuries to their starters, including Cunningham and Caitlin Clark.They heavily rely on veteran guard Kelsey Mitchell’s performance. However, they are not to be underestimated and will most likely provide stern test to the Aces in the series.