Sun-Mercury Preview By MATT BECKER STATS Editor
The Phoenix Mercury and Connecticut Sun tangled in a pair of highly entertaining matchups in 2015. Another thriller would be welcomed Tuesday night since neither team has had much excitement in the early going of 2016. The Mercury are coming off their first win as they host a Sun team looking to avoid a fourth straight loss in this matchup of conference cellar dwellers. Phoenix dodged the first 0-5 start in franchise history with Sunday's 93-77 win over Washington. Diana Taurasi scored 20 of her 28 points in the second half, tallying 10 during a 23-7 run that erased a 10-point deficit. It was an encouraging performance for Taurasi, who missed 12 of 15 shots and committed seven turnovers in the previous game. Her 22.6 scoring average is second in the league. Jasmine Thomas tops the Sun (1-4) with an average of 13.4 points - the lowest for any team leader. She had 17 on 5-of-8 shooting Saturday, but Kelsey Bone was Connecticut's only other starter in double figures with 14 in a 93-81 loss at Seattle. Bone had one of the best games of her career in Connecticut's last trip to Phoenix on June 19, scoring a then-career-high 27 while matching a personal best with 14 rebounds in a 90-78 double-overtime win. Phoenix's DeWanna Bonner made a layup at the regulation buzzer to send the game to overtime. The Mercury then fell apart in the second extra session, missing their final five shots as the Sun closed on a 12-0 run to snap Phoenix's 22-game home winning streak. The Mercury got a measure of revenge at Connecticut in August, as Leilani Mitchell hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer for an 81-80 victory. Bonner combined for 47 points in the two games while Brittney Griner had 14 points and 13 rebounds in the win after being suspended for the first meeting. Griner, the reigning two-time Defensive Player of the Year, hasn't been a force inside this season. She is averaging 2 blocks after having a league-record 4 per game last season and is 27th in rebounding at 5.2 per game after ranking seventh in 2015 at 8.1. These are two of the league's worst rebounding teams, with the Sun averaging 31 and the Mercury at a WNBA-low 30.2. |