Atlanta Dream at Phoenix Mercury
· Women's National Basketball AssociationCopper has career-high 38, Cunningham hits clutch 3s as Mercury top Dream 88-85
Cheyenne Parker-Tyus had 11 points and Allisha Gray 10 in the fourth quarter as the Dream, down 70-60 with 8:43 to play, charged back to lead 81-74 at the 4:11 mark. A layup by Parker-Tyus produced Atlanta's first lead of the game at 73-72.
Cunningham answered with a 3-pointer and Copper's four free throws pulled the Mercury within 83-81 with 1 1/2 minutes to play. Following an offensive foul on Tina Charles, Copper found Cunningham on the left side for a 3-pointer and the lead with 1:11 to play. Natasha Cloud then blocked a Rhyne Howard attempt and Copper converted that into a layup for an 86-83 lead at 28.1 seconds.
Parker-Tyus made it a one-point game again but Copper answered and Howard missed a a 3-point try for the tie.
Diana Taurasi had 15 points and Cunningham 10 for the Mercury (1-1), who gave Nate Tibbetts his first win in the WNBA.
Gray finished with 22 points, Howard had 21 and Parker-Tyus 18 for the Dream (1-1)
Phoenix led from the outset, scoring the first seven points and leading 24-15 after one quarter and 43-37 at the half.
Copper and Taurasi combined for 23 points but Howard kept the Dream in it with 17, going 4 of 5 on 3-pointers.
Atlanta closed the third quarter with a 7-2 run to clip another point off the Phoenix lead and trailed 65-60 going into the fourth quarter, despite Copper scoring 16 of the 22 Mercury points.
At halftime the Mercury unveiled banners for their Ring of Honor members: first coach and general manager Cheryl Miller and players Penny Taylor, Bridget Pettis, Jennifer Gillom and Michele Timms. Four were inducted to the team's Hall of Fame in 2006 while Taylor, who along with Taurasi played on all three Mercury championship teams, was inducted in 2017.
----
Regular Season Series
PHX wins series 3-1
Recent Plays
4th 0.0 | End of Game | 85 - 88 | |
4th 0.0 | End of the 4th Quarter | 85 - 88 | |
4th 4.0 | Diana Taurasi defensive rebound | 85 - 88 | |
4th 6.1 | Rhyne Howard misses 26-foot three point jumper | 85 - 88 | |
4th 20.1 | Kahleah Copper makes driving layup (Natasha Cloud assists) | 85 - 88 |
Statistics
ATL | PHX | |
---|---|---|
27-66 | FG | 27-66 |
40.9 | Field Goal % | 40.9 |
10-23 | 3PT | 6-23 |
43.5 | Three Point % | 26.1 |
21-27 | FT | 28-32 |
77.8 | Free Throw % | 87.5 |
33 | Rebounds | 38 |
7 | Offensive Rebounds | 7 |
26 | Defensive Rebounds | 31 |
21 | Assists | 17 |
8 | Steals | 10 |
5 | Blocks | 5 |
13 | Turnovers | 12 |
1 | Team Turnovers | 0 |
14 | Total Turnovers | 12 |
0 | Technical Fouls | 1 |
0 | Total Technical Fouls | 1 |
0 | Flagrant Fouls | 0 |
14 | Points Conceded Off Turnovers | 13 |
12 | Fast Break Points | 6 |
32 | Points in Paint | 34 |
21 | Fouls | 22 |
7 | Largest Lead | 12 |
Game Information
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Attendance: 10,251 · Capacity:
2023-24 Eastern Conference Standings
TEAM | W | L | PCT | GB | STRK |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
New York | - | 8 | L1 | 0.8 | 32 |
Connecticut | 4 | 12 | W1 | 0.7 | 28 |
Indiana | 12 | 20 | L1 | 0.5 | 20 |
Atlanta | 17 | 25 | W3 | 0.375 | 15 |
Washington | 18 | 26 | W1 | 0.35 | 14 |
Chicago | 19 | 27 | L5 | 0.325 | 13 |
WNBA News
Curt Miller out as head coach of WNBA's Sparks after 2 seasons
Curt Miller, who had a 25-55 record and did not make the playoffs in his two seasons with Los Angeles, is out as head coach of the Sparks, the team said.
Fever's Caitlin Clark says eye poke unintentional, 'feels good'
Fever star Caitlin Clark dismissed any notion of intent after getting poked in the eye in Game 1 of their playoff series vs. the Sun, saying "just watch the play."
Why Caitlin Clark will 'rise to the moment' in playoffs
Ryan Ruocco joins "NBA Today" to discuss Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever's first-round matchup vs. the Connecticut Sun.
WNBA mock draft 2025: Which team will pick Paige Bueckers?
The lottery likely isn't until December, and the league hasn't announced draft plans for Golden State. Paige Bueckers and Kiki Iriafen could go 1-2.
Minnesota hosts Phoenix with 1-0 series lead
Phoenix Mercury (19-21, 10-10 Western Conference) at Minnesota Lynx (30-10, 14-6 Western Conference)