Mercury-Shock Preview

By KATE HEDLIN
Posted May 21 2012 2:10PM

Already without Penny Taylor, the Phoenix Mercury opened the season without Diana Taurasi as well.

Taurasi's status is unclear going into Tuesday night's game in Tulsa as the Mercury try for a ninth straight victory over the Shock.

Phoenix learned it would be without Taylor for the year after she suffered a torn ACL in April. She was second on the team with 16.7 points per game last season while helping to facilitate the WNBA's highest-scoring offense.

The Mercury, however, didn't anticipate opening 2012 without Taurasi, who was a late scratch Sunday with a strained hip flexor. Without its leaders, Phoenix lost 105-83 to Minnesota.

Taurasi is day to day, with the Mercury's official website saying the decision to sit her was precautionary. Taurasi missed two games last season with back spasms, but led the league with 21.6 points per game.

"When she's in, it's kind of like she just settles everyone down a little bit. She's kind of like a safety valve," said rookie Samantha Prahalis, who had 12 points and six assists but also four turnovers in her debut.

Coach Corey Gaines said in the preseason that his team hoped to improve defensively after giving up a league-high 86.0 points per game last year, but the Lynx shot 57.1 percent and outrebounded the Mercury 40-28.

Phoenix lost its first three games last season and is trying to avoid another early deficit in the Western Conference. A matchup against Tulsa should help that cause.

After going a league-worst 3-31 last season, the Shock opened 2012 with an 88-79 loss to San Antonio on Saturday.

Tulsa, which lost its final six games last year, was without two of its top three scorers from 2011. Tiffany Jones (formerly Jackson), who averaged a team-high 12.4 points, is pregnant and will miss the season, while Elizabeth Cambage (11.5 ppg) won't join the team until after the London Olympics.

Former Mercury guard Temeka Johnson scored 21 points Saturday and Ivory Latta added 14 off the bench, but the Shock allowed the Silver Stars to go on a 15-2 run over the final 2:33.

"We have a young team and it's going to be a work in progress," coach Gary Kloppenburg said. "Our kids played extremely hard and gave themselves a chance to win. We just couldn't execute at both ends in the last 10 minutes."

Tulsa was the lowest-scoring team in the WNBA in 2011 with 69.2 points per game while giving up the second-most at 82.1.

Phoenix has won eight in a row against Tulsa since a loss in 2009 when the Shock franchise was in Detroit. Taurasi averaged 18.3 points in the season series in 2011, never playing more than 26 minutes as the Mercury won the four meetings by an average of 21.0 points.

Mercury edge Shock 89-87

Posted May 23 2012 12:18AM

TULSA, Okla. (AP) Candice Dupree scored 31 points and had a key offensive rebound that led to Samantha Prahalis' winning free throws with 22.2 seconds left and the Phoenix Mercury held off the Tulsa Shock for an 89-87 victory on Tuesday.

Diana Taurasi started, but played only 10 minutes and scored three points in her first playing time of the season while recovering from a strained left hip flexor.

``We wanted her to test it tonight, but you could tell when she got on the court that she just couldn't move,'' Phoenix coach Corey Gaines said.

Temeka Johnson and Ivory Latta each scored 16 points for Tulsa (0-2). DeWanna Bonner had 16 points for Phoenix (1-1).

``At our last practice, we set up some different plays for her (Dupree) and told her to be aggressive,'' Gaines said. ``To get this win on the road and avoid starting 0-2 is big for us.''

Trailing by 11 with 4:42 to play, Tulsa went on a 14-2 run to take the lead at 86-85 on Glory Johnson's two free throws with 1:26 remaining.

Charde Houston hit a pair of free throws to put the Mercury ahead 87-86, before Tulsa's Scholanda Dorrell made a free to tie it at 87 with 55.8 seconds left.

Following a miss by Houston, Dupree grabbed the offensive rebound and Prahalis was fouled on the possession. She hit both free throws to give Phoenix an 89-87 lead.

``That was part of being aggressive,'' said Dupree, who missed her career high by one point. ``Our coaches kept telling us to crash the boards and I saw an opening where I could get to the ball.''

Tulsa still had a chance to tie the game. Following a frenzied last possession by the Shock, Dorrell appeared to tie the game on a putback at the buzzer, but officials reviewed the play and waived off the basket.

It's just unbelievable to me that it happened like that,'' Temeka Johnson said. ``It was a great offensive board by Sho. She did what she needed to do to get in there and try to put it back. Glory came up with the rebound and it's something we needed throughout this whole game. It's a tough one to swallow, but we've got to regroup.''

Trailing 59-53 midway through the third quarter, Phoenix went on a 17-4 run to end the period.

Bonner played a big part in the Mercury run, hitting a 3-pointer to kickstart the Phoenix offense and adding a three-point play with 1:48 to play in the period.

• Mercury: --
• Shock: --

• Mercury: Hornbuckle
• Shock: Johnson

• Lead Changes: 9
• Times Tied: 9

• Arena: BOK Center, Tulsa, OK
• Officials: #45 Tom Mauer, #7 Clarke Stevens, #25 Marcus Clayton
• Attendance: 5341
• Duration: 2:11