PHOENIX, Aug. 13 (Ticker) -- Diana Taurasi ended her record-shattering season with another aggressive performance.

Taurasi scored 29 points and Cappie Pondexter added 20 as the Phoenix Mercury won their seventh straight game with an 81-71 victory over the Sacramento Monarchs in the regular-season finale for both teams.

NBA TV highlights from Monarchs-Mercury: Play

Averaging nearly 98 points during their winning streak, the Mercury (18-16) finished above .500 for the first time since 2000. Phoenix set a league record by averaging 87.0 points, snapping the mark set by the Houston Comets in 2000 (77.3).

Two games after setting the WNBA's single-game scoring mark with 47 points against Houston, Taurasi made 11-of-27 shots, including six 3-pointers, to finish with a league-record 860 points. She also averaged 25.2 points to break Katie Smith's single-season mark set in 2001.

Penny Taylor scored nine points in the second quarter, including a three-point play, and Taurasi added seven in the session for Phoenix, which outscored Sacramento, 30-18, en route to a 49-46 halftime lead.

The Mercury held the Monarchs without a basket for the first 4:47 of the second half and took advantage of a pair of 3-pointers by Taurasi for 69-59 bulge after three quarters.

Taylor finished with 19 points for Phoenix, which failed to qualify for the postseason and finished fifth in the Western Conference.

Kara Lawson scored 19 points and Erin Buescher added 12 for the defending champion Monarchs (21-13), who begin the playoffs Thursday against Houston.