UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) — Brittney Griner and Diana Taurasi each scored 27 points
to help the Phoenix Mercury beat the Connecticut Sun 96-86 on Thursday night in
the second round of the WNBA playoffs.
The Mercury will face Seattle in the conference semifinals, starting Sunday.
Stephanie Talbot hit a 3-pointer to tie it at 94 with 4:19 left. Griner then
scored four points and had a key block on Courtney Williams to give the Mercury
a 92-86 lead with 1:11 left.
Taurasi improved to 13-0 in her career in deciding playoff games. The former
UConn star got the team going early, hitting from all over the court.
The game was a rematch of last season’s second round contest that the Mercury
won 88-83. In that game the Mercury didn’t have DeWanna Bonner, who was out for
the season while she gave birth to twins. On Thursday night she played nearly
the entire game and finished with 23 points and 18 rebounds.
Courtney Williams led the Sun with 27 points, including a four-point play in the
fourth quarter.
