DeWanna Bonner gave the Phoenix Mercury a lifeline with 24.1 seconds remaining against the New York Liberty, but the Mercury failed to close the deal, losing an important matchup, 94-92, at Mortgage Matchup Center on Saturday, Aug. 1.
Kahleah Copper had just poked the ball out from New York‘s Sabrina Ionescu and found an open Bonner along the perimeter. Bonner hesitated and looked around for other options before hitting a 3-pointer to cut the deficit to two points.
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With ample time left, the Mercury could steal the game. But Phoenix burned 11 seconds before fouling, and the game started to fall out of their hands.
After the Liberty’s Breanna Stewart sunk both free throws, the Mercury’s Alyssa Thomas hit a layup with four seconds left but New York killed the final four seconds.
The Mercury (11-19) squandered a prime opportunity to close the gap on the Liberty, and now are six games out of the final playoff spot with only 14 remaining.
“Obviously, we’re trying to push to make the playoffs and we got to go on a run, we understand that,” coach Nate Tibbetts said. “Every time we lose, we got to be willing to bounce back and forget this when that time comes. I’ve been proud of the way we’ve played lately, and we put ourselves in a position to win another good game today, but we didn’t get it done.”
The Mercury won’t have another home game until Aug. 16, but by that time, the postseason could be out of reach. Phoenix has five consecutive road games up next, with two against opponents currently in playoff position.
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The Mercury looked sluggish at the start and were 0-for-5 on field goals before Bonner’s layup at 4:04. By then, the Liberty were up 11-3 and kept finding the right shots.
But Bonner helped the Phoenix offense get back into it in the second quarter, supplying five points in a 7-0 run. The Mercury outscored the Liberty by eight points, but New York controlled the glass and didn’t allow many second-chance looks.
The Mercury’s 11-0 run midway through the third quarter gave them their first lead of the game, which ballooned to 10 with just more than three minutes remaining in the quarter. The defense locked up the Liberty, giving up only six points in nearly six minutes of play.
However, the Liberty didn’t go away and flexed their 3-point shooting. New York outscored the Mercury 14-3 in the next four minutes as the Mercury committed three turnovers.
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“I think the last three quarters was the level we needed to get to,” Tibbetts said. “I didn’t think in the first quarter, the way we came out, we didn’t get after it the way we needed to. I thought we had some really good possessions and some deflating possessions. They hit two 3s right at the end of the shot clock. Those are hard to overcome.”
Bonner had another excellent game for the Mercury as one of the top options on offense. She led the team with seven rebounds, and, over the past five games, has averaged 16 points and eight rebounds.
The 38-year-old has played a lot in the past two games against bigger lineups and took the most shots against New York, scoring 25 points on 9-of-17 shooting. Copper also added 25 points.
“We’re using me in different ways than in the first half of the season,” Bonner said. “When I’m aggressive, it opens up things for Kah and space for Alyssa. We’re just figuring out where I can get reps, and now we’re using me in different ways in different situations, and it’s kind of keeping teams off balance.”
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Ionescu had only six points in the fourth quarter, but made two 3-pointers at critical points, including a long 28-footer to boost the Liberty lead to 87-81.
Ionescu led New York with 27 points and four 3-pointers.
The Liberty proved they had more options from 3-point range, including 6-foot-11 center Han Xu, who went 3-of-6 from deep and scored 17 points off the bench.
The Mercury now sit behind three other teams for the eighth spot. One of the teams in that race is the Chicago Sky, which will be Phoenix’s next opponent on Monday, Aug. 3.
Reach the reporter or send tips for stories at jenna.ortiz@arizonarepublic.com, as well as @jennarortiz on X.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix Mercury fumble chance to boost playoff hopes, fall to Liberty
