Ryan Ruocco has made a name for himself as one of the best play-by-play voices in basketball, particularly alongside Rebecca Lobo as the announcer for the WNBA Finals and Women’s Final Four. And he gave what may be the signature call of his career thus far for A’ja Wilson’s game-winner in Game 3 of the 2025 WNBA Finals.
The Las Vegas Aces entered Game 3 of the Finals leading the Phoenix Mercury 2-0 in the series. And it looked like they would stroll to a nearly insurmountable 3-0 lead in the series thanks to a 17 point lead entering the fourth quarter.
Somehow, though, the Mercury stormed back, tying the score at 88-88 with just under a minute to play. That’s when the Aces turned to who else but four-time MVP A’ja Wilson.
Wilson hit a step back jumper from the midrange to put the Aces back on top 90-88 with just a tenth of a second left on the clock. And Ruocco was ready for the moment, unleashing his patented “You bet!” call with extra authority, even doubling down on it.
After a desperation shot at the buzzer for the Mercury failed, Wilson and the Aces emerged triumphant and now look all but certain to win their third WNBA title in five years.
But back to Ryan Ruocco. That’s the first double “you bet” that we can ever remember. And it’s great timing because his NBA counterpart Mike Breen has been notable for how judicious he is in choosing when to invoke his famous double “bang.”
If there was a shot worthy of doing so, it’s definitely a WNBA or NBA Finals game-winner.
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