Among the many things Diana Taurasi has done during her distinguished WNBA
career, there’s one thing she hasn’t done.
She’s never lost a winner-take-all game in the league.
ESPN spouted the numbers Tuesday night after Taurasi helped lead the Phoenix
Mercury to a 101-83 victory over the Dallas Wings in the first round of the
league playoffs.
The WNBA’s all-time leading scorer and two-time finals MVP is 12-0 with her
season on the line. Taurasi has averaged 22.9 points and 5.3 assists in those
games, shooting 45 percent from the floor and 38 percent from 3-point range.
On Thursday night, Taurasi puts that streak on the line when the former
University of Connecticut star brings the Mercury to Uncasville, Conn., to face
the Sun in a second-round, winner-take-all game at Mohegan Sun Arena.
“At this point, you try to do what you can at the highest level,” Taurasi said
after she scored 26 points and a career playoff-high 12 assists in Tuesday’s
win. “That’s the one thing that I’ve always told other players and I told
myself: I’m going to just try to do what I can do, not more, not less, and try
to do that at the highest level.
“When you do that good things happen and sometimes it works out really well for
you.”
One of those 12 wins came last year, when Phoenix eliminated the Sun on the same
floor — when Taurasi and Brittney Griner combined for 49 points.
On Thursday, Taurasi became the first player to score at least 20 points, dish
out at least 10 assists and hit at least five treys in the same WNBA playoff
game.
DeWanna Bronner scored 29 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as the Mercury, the
fifth seed, won their fifth straight game, mostly thanks to a 26-15 third
quarter that included six 3-pointers.
Phoenix now takes on the No. 4 Sun, who won four straight (all at home) and nine
of their last 10 games down the stretch, but played the last two games — both
wins — without leader Chiney Ogwumike as she rested a sore knee.
Ogwumike is questionable for Thursday night.
Taurasi averaged 24 points as the Mercury took the season series from
Connecticut 2-1. But the two wins came in Phoenix while the Sun won the game
they played at home on July 13.
Courtney Williams had 25 points, 10 rebounds and four assists and Ogwumike 22
points in the win. Alyssa Thomas, who missed the first two games with injuries,
dished out a career-high 10 assists in the win.
“They’re good. They have a lot of experience, a lot of length,” Thomas said at
Wednesday’s practice. “Their big three is playing extremely well right now so
our main focus is just coming in, playing our game and trying to slow them down.
“We remember what happened last year and it kind of left a bitter taste in out
mouth. We’ve got to come in and be locked in for 40 minutes and not repeat last
year.”
Taurasi scored 19 points and Bonner had 13 rebounds in the Mercury win on June
16 and Taurasi tallied 25 and Bonner hauled down 13 boards on July 5 in Arizona.
With Ogwumike out, Jonquel Jones was outstanding and earned player of the week
honors. In fact, in the last four games, Jones, who has to help her team deal
with Griner inside, has averaged 21.8 points and 9.8 rebounds.
Sun coach Curt Miller said his team has “to use our home crowd for energy and
emotion,” pointing out the Sun were tied for the league’s best home record
(13-4) despite a pair of heartbreaking buzzer-beating losses, including one on a
half-court shot.
On Wednesday, Jones was named WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year when the league
announced its awards.
