Liberty-Mercury Preview

By MATT BEARDMORE
Posted Aug 22 2012 4:14PM

In the city where she played high school ball, Cappie Pondexter helped the New York Liberty boost their playoff hopes in their last game.

The league's second-highest scorer will try to deliver again in the place where she started her WNBA career.

Pondexter and the Liberty look to extend the Phoenix Mercury's team-record losing streak to nine Thursday night when the clubs meet for the first time in 2012.

Loser of four of five heading into Tuesday's game at Chicago, New York (8-13) won 77-67 to move within one-half game of the Sky for the fourth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

Pondexter, the first two-time Ms. Illinois basketball while at Marshall High School, scored 25 points to bump her average to 20.3.

"Obviously it's important because you have a buildup of excitement from being home, but more importantly we needed this win to inch closer to the playoffs,'' she said after New York improved to 1-1 on its five-game trip.

Pondexter, who won WNBA titles with the Mercury in 2007 and 2009, returns to Phoenix for the third time since being dealt to New York in a three-team swap in 2010 that brought Candice Dupree to the Mercury.

In New York's last game in the desert, Pondexter scored 17 of her 25 points in the final 6:32 of a 74-70 victory Aug. 23.

It was a far better result than in her first trip to Phoenix as a visiting player, as she was ejected in the third quarter of a 97-82 loss July 3, 2010, for smacking Penny Taylor in the face on a layup attempt.

The Mercury (4-17) have been dealing with plenty of frustration as they've gone winless since June 29 and are one game ahead of Tulsa - owner of the league's worst record.

Phoenix is coming off the most lopsided defeat in team history, 89-47 to San Antonio on Sunday that also established a team mark for consecutive defeats.

"Today we got embarrassed pretty much," said guard Alexis Hornbuckle, who finished with a team-high 11 points in the club's lowest-scoring game of the year.

The Mercury, scoring nearly 15 fewer points per game than in 2011 when they led the league with 89.0, could get a lift if Diana Taurasi can play for the first time since May 26. The team's official Twitter account said that Taurasi, who has missed the bulk of the season with a hip injury, would return this week following a dental procedure Friday.

Taurasi, who helped lead the United States to the gold medal in London with a team-best 12.4 points per game, missed the Liberty's last visit due to back spasms.

The Mercury's DeWanna Bonner is third in the league with 19.6 points a contest but is coming off her two lowest-scoring games of the season, recording 10- and seven-point efforts while going a combined 7 of 34 from the field.

The Mercury have dropped a franchise-worst five straight at home.

Pondexter scores 31 to lead Liberty past Mercury

Posted Aug 24 2012 2:14AM

PHOENIX (AP) Cappie Pondexter scored 31 points to lead the New York Liberty to an 89-77 victory over Phoenix on Thursday night, handing the Mercury their ninth straight loss.

Nicole Powell and Leilani Mitchell scored 13 points each, Plenette Pierson had 12 points and Kara Braxton added 12 points and nine rebounds to help the Liberty (9-13) win for the third time in four games since the league's month-long Olympic break.

``We've had injuries like Phoenix ... so we've been out of synch,'' Liberty coach John Whisenant said. ``Since the break we've been playing better because we got everyone healthy and we've been able to practice with healthy people... And we've been making shots. Coaching is a lot easier when we make shots.''

Pondexter shot 9 for 15 from the field - 5 for 9 on 3pointers - and was 8 for 8 from the free-throw line. New York shot 47 percent (30 for 64), including 13 for 27 on 3s, and moved into sole possession of fourth place in the Eastern Conference, one-half game ahead of Chicago and two games behind third-place Atlanta.

``We have to stay afloat,'' Pondexter said. ``Our goal is to win eight more games to be in a safe position.''

DeWanna Bonner scored 34 points for Phoenix (4-18), which continued to play without several of its injured regulars. Bonner shot 11 for 26 from the field, tying her career high for baskets made.

The Liberty led by 18 in the first half before Phoenix rallied to pull to 56-53 midway through the third period on Bonner's layup. However, Pondexter scored nine points over the next 6 minutes and New York took a 70-61 lead into the final period.

``I don't know if we just came out a little too passive,'' Bonner said. ``We're trying to figure things out and we end up digging ourselves a hole. With this team you can't do that. We have to come out aggressive and its hard to do that when you're down 15, 16 points.''

Sammy Prahalis added 12 points, four rebounds and four assists, and Krystal Thomas added a career-high 14 rebounds for the Mercury, who played only eight players.

Phoenix was without Olympic gold medalist Diana Taurasi, who was in warmups but said she felt lightheaded and did not play. She underwent a dental procedure last Friday. Before the Olympic break, Taurasi had missed 18 of Phoenix's 20 games with a hip flexor but then led the Americans in scoring during the Olympic tournament, averaging 12.4 points a game.

``Practices are better and hopefully next game she'll play,'' Mercury coach Corey Gaines said.

Phoenix regulars Candice Dupree (knee), Alexis Gray-Lawson (knee) and Charde Houston (ankle) all sat out with injuries.

New York made 4 of 5 from beyond the arc in the first 4 minutes and then scored eight straight points to take a 30-16 lead after the first quarter.

Pondexter hit three 3s in the second to help the Liberty take a 45-27 lead with 4:36 left in the half. But Bonner scored nine points down the stretch as the Mercury closed to 50-40 at the break.

``We lost that first quarter and we couldn't dig ourselves out of that hole,'' Gaines said. ``You know we cut it down to three but they hit some shots.''

• Liberty: --
• Mercury: --

• Liberty: --
• Mercury: --

• Lead Changes: 1
• Times Tied: 0

• Arena: US Airways Center, Phoenix, AZ
• Officials: #38 Lamont Simpson, #13 Cameron Inouye, #45 Tom Mauer
• Attendance: 7039
• Duration: 1:50