Taurasi explodes for 37 points, Canadian Nurse adds 11 as Mercury cruises past Aces
Thomas, Bonner score 15 points each to lift Sun past Sky, even series
Even on an injured foot, Diana Taurasi showed she's far from done chasing another championship.
Taurasi scored a playoff career-high 37 points and the Phoenix Mercury overwhelmed the Las Vegas Aces 117-91 on Thursday night to even the best-of-five WNBA semifinal series at a game apiece.
"We brought a different mindset to the game, an aggression," Taurasi said. "That's what these games come down to. In Game 1, they were the aggressors. They played more physical. Today we did that and sustained that for long periods."
Taurasi, the 39-year-old guard who has been dealing with a left ankle injury, was 10 of 13 from the field and made a career-high eight 3-pointers in 11 attempts.
WATCH l Diana Taurasi drops 37 points to lead Mercury past Aces:
She missed the final four games of the regular season and the single-elimination first-round matchup against the New York Liberty. Mercury coach Sandy Brondello said Taurasi did not practice in the weeks leading up to the playoffs, and didn't take part in any basketball activities until Sunday's playoff game against the Seattle Storm.
"I think as you get older, obviously you want to practice and get into a rhythm, but that's when you've really got to lock in and lean on your experiences you've had in this league for a long time," Taurasi said.
Kia Nurse of Hamilton, Ont. added 11 points, two assists and one rebound in 21 minutes for Phoenix.
Phoenix set a WNBA playoff record with 68 first-half points on 76.5 per cent shooting. Brittney Griner scored 25 points, 16 of them in the first quarter, to go with seven rebounds and five assists.
Kelsey Plum, honoured as the league's Sixth Player of the Year on Thursday, led the Aces with 25 points. Riquna Williams had 17, and Liz Cambage added 13.
"We weren't locked in," Aces forward A'ja Wilson said. "We weren't locked in at all to our assignments. It seemed like we were one step behind. You can't do that against a good Phoenix team."
Tip-ins
Phoenix outrebounded Las Vegas 36-23 and went 14 of 26 from 3-point range. Las Vegas finished 4 of 16 from deep despite shooting 52.2 per cent from the field. ... It's the third consecutive season an Aces player has won the Sixth Player of the Year. Dearica Hamby won the award in 2019 and 2020.
Fast start
Much like in Game 1, Phoenix got off to a strong offensive start. This time the Mercury were able to withstand it.
The Mercury shot 84.2 per cent in the first quarter en route to a 37-20 lead after the opening 10 minutes. Phoenix started the game on a 13-2 run with Taurasi making her first two shots.
Griner was the force at the start. She started the game 7 of 8 while contributing with five rebounds and three assists. Each of those assists came off double teams.
"I think it was more about we executed. I thought we exploited some of their matchups," Brondello said. "We took better shots in this game than we did in the first game."
Officiating issues
Laimbeer was not pleased with the way the game was called regarding his team.
"They treat us like we're champions, and we get a champion's whistle," Laimbeer said. "We're not. We're trying to win our first one. Why treat us like that? Why put them in the game? Were we going to win this game? Probably not. But at least give us some respect."
Laimbeer provided a vague instance where a foul was called "before it even happened" to give Phoenix free throws.
The Mercury went 23 of 24 from the free-throw line, with Taurasi making all nine attempts. The Aces were 15 of 22.
"We're tired of it," he said.
Game 3 is at Phoenix on Sunday.
Thomas, Bonner lead Sun to even series
Alyssa Thomas worked hard for eight months rehabbing her torn Achilles' tendon to be able to provide a spark for the Connecticut Sun in the playoffs.
The Sun's "engine" did just that, scoring 15 points and providing a defensive presence to help the team even their best-of-five series with the Chicago Sky at one win apiece with a 79-68 victory Thursday night.
"You think how far ahead of schedule she is in her Achilles' rehab to get back at all and playing [is amazing].," Connecticut coach Curt Miller said. "To play in this environment in this big a game and have that tenacity and intensity is remarkable. Players have to follow her and respect her. a night when it wasn't [Jonquel Jones'] night. her presence for us was invaluable."
Thomas, who has played through shoulder injuries throughout her career, was able to return from a surgery in January from an injury she suffered playing overseas last winter.
WATCH l Connecticut Sun down Chicago Sky after big 4th quarter:
"This is one of the hardest things I've gone through," she said. "I watched them get after it every game and in practice that pushed me even harder to get back to this moment."
The Sun won despite WNBA MVP Jones scoring just four points. She didn't score until 3:11 left in the third quarter and missed seven of her nine shot attempts.
Thomas made up for it.
"You've seen her do it over her career. She's the toughest player to play this game," Sun guard Jasmine Thomas said. "To see her come back at a time where that's what we were missing."
The Sun trailed 59-58 heading into the fourth quarter before starting the period on a 13-3 run to take command. Thomas had six points during the game-changing spurt. DeWanna Bonner capped it with a 3-pointer with 3:59 left that made it 71-62. Bonner also had 15 points.
💰💰💰<br><br>📺 ESPN2 <a href="https://t.co/u5NdTLRVPz">pic.twitter.com/u5NdTLRVPz</a>
—@WNBAThe Sky could only get within six the rest of the way. The series shifts to Chicago on Sunday for Game 3.
Chicago looked poised early on to build on the momentum of its Game 1 double-overtime win, racing out to an 11-0 lead. Connecticut rallied back behind Jasmine Thomas to get within 23-21 after one.
The Sun led 45-39 at the half behind strong play from Jasmine Thomas, who finished the opening 20 minutes with 12 points.
Kahleah Copper led Chicago with 13 points and Candace Parker added 12.
