AThe Phoenix Mercury came out sloppy with a couple turnovers to start the game but quickly snapped out of it after a Satou Sabally and one layup.  

Alyssa Thomas once again living up to the nickname “The Engine” came out of the 1st quarter with four points, three rebounds and four assists. 

Off the bench, DeWanna Bonner shot a perfect 3/3 from three to give Phoenix a 26-6 lead after the first. 

Connecticut answered with an 11-2 run because of sloppy play from Mercury and physical defense of Connecticut.  A much-needed boost for the Sun after shooting just 13% from the field in the first.  

Connecticut’s Marina Mabrey and Tina Charles did what they could to cut a 20-point deficit, but Phoenix stayed the course to bring a 44-28 lead into the half. 

Coming out of the half, Mercury’s leading scorer, Sabally, put up a quick six points in the first two minutes of the third, followed by a Monique Akoa Makani three pointer to give the Mercury a 9-2 run to start the quarter.

Things got chippy in the third with both Mabrey and Thomas picking up technical fouls.

Despite few runs throughout the second half, Phoenix’s smothering defense and total team effort on offense was too much for the Sun.  Marina Mabrey put up a team high 18 points.

Sabally finished the game with a team high 23 points. Copper gave Phoenix 15 points followed with DeWanna Bonner’s 18 points off the bench. 

“I feel like we have a lot of scorers, so just the spacing and the opportunities that I have just spacing and catching and shooting,” said Bonner after her 18-point performance off the bench.

Alyssa Thomas put the cherry on top of the win with her second consecutive triple double— finishing with 13 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists. 

“She’s super consistent in her approach. Nothings surprises me anymore for her bidding a triple double,” said Mercury head coach Nate Tibbets when asked on Thomas’ importance to the team. 

The trio of Sabally, Thomas and Copper powered Phoenix to their 18th win of the season.