A day after dazzling a national TV audience in the WNBA All Star Game, Diana Taurasi proved that back-to-back games don't drain everyone.
Taurasi scored 34 points and grabbed 13 rebounds (both game highs) in a 94-88 win by her Phoenix Mercury over the host New York Liberty.
"We just stayed with it," says Taurasi. "That second quarter I thought was important. We cut it to like two, then they came in and made a little run. But we were feeling good." Taurasi's 34 points were complemented by 20 from forward Le'coe Willingham, and 10 from both Cappie Pondexter and DeWanna Bonner.
Phoenix (13-5) fell behind early, and by as many as 12. Yet they slowly chipped away at New York's lead, outscoring them in each of the latter three quarters. They got their first lead in the third quarter, and after relinquishing it only once thereafter, they pulled away at the end with key threes and lay-ups.
"We're not a historically good starting team," Taurasi adds. "The road's tough. They came out and played well, hit a lot of shots. They're a tough team; their record really doesn't indicate how good they are."
Liberty Losses
Only one of the Liberty's (6-10) ten losses this was by more than ten points. Yet they continue to struggle with playing games solidly throughout, a subject of particular frustration for head coach Pat Coyle.
"For about 36 minutes I thought we played real well," says Coyle. "It was those four minutes; we can't have empty possessions against a team like Phoenix because they make you pay for it on the other end. I thought we went through a bit of a stretch where we didn't execute like we needed to."
A pair of Janel McCarville free throws with 2:29 to play gave the Liberty their final lead at 83-81. Then Phoenix center Tangela Smith tied the game with a lay-up. Upon getting the ball back, Taurasi sank a three-point shot. Loree Moore came through with a lay-up for New York, and then Smith hit a 16-foot jump shot to make it 88-85. New York's Cathrine Kraayeveld responded with a three, yet that concluded the Liberty's scoring as Phoenix added 6 more points in the final minute for the win.
For New York, forward Shameka Christon hit 21 points while guard Essence Carson drilled 14.
Mighty Mercury
Taurasi and Pondexter head right back to Connecticut for a regular season matchup with the Sun Tuesday. At 13-5, they are the top team in the Western Conference, and have upcoming road dates with Minnesota and Seattle after their Connecticut trip.
"I just try to do a little bit of everything," says Taurasi. "Getting on the glass is one thing that we're not good at, so we're trying to pick that up a little bit more."
