Diana Taurasi had just scored 22 points in her WNBA debut, hit a 52-foot bank shot before halftime and lived up to every compliment ever paid her, and one sentiment kept running through her mind. “This sucks,” she said.

Diana, we're not in Connecticut anymore.

The Mercury were beaten, 72-66, by the Sacramento Monarchs Thursday night, giving the most successful women's basketball player in history a taste of how the other half lives.

“That's life,” Taurasi said, and it's her life now, the three straight national championships at Connecticut and the back-to-back Player of the Year awards just sweet memories and hardware.

In the defeat and disappointment, though, there was the first glimpse of a star, and the imagination of how bright it might shine.

“She's one of the few rookies that won't play like a rookie,” Mercury general manager Seth Sulka said before Thursday's game. “I don't know that there's a learning curve with her.”

There isn't. In 38 minutes, Taurasi showed an announced crowd of 10,493 what the fuss was all about. In addition to her game-high 22 points, she had three rebounds, three blocked shots and three assists.

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She also fouled out. Even the best rookies get no respect.

“For the first time in a legitimate game, she did some great things,” said Mercury coach Carrie Graf. “She's special in a whole lot of ways.”

Taurasi isn't flashy. But her instincts, vision and feel for the game are superb. If this isn't a blaphemous comparison, she's the distaff version of former Boston Celtics great Larry Bird.

“She does everything a coach likes,” said Suns coach Mike D'Antoni, among those in the crowd.“She's a joy to watch.”

Like Bird, Taurasi's best attribute may be her ability to make teammates better. She threw passes Thursday that I've never seen before in a women's game.

Apparently, many of Taurasi's teammates haven't seen them either. Several of her quick, no-look passes bounced off unsuspecting hands. Once the Mercury get used to playing with a maestro, those turnovers should become points.

One subtle sequence in the first half defined Taurasi's gift. A teammate launched an errant pass above Taurasi's head. Knowing she couldn't make the catch, Taurasi leaped in the air and tapped the ball to teammate Penny Taylor.

“She's awesome, a great player,” said Sacramento coach John Whisenant. “She has always intrigued me; she has the Bird, Magic and John Stockton ability to see the whole floor.”

It's clear that the Mercury already have become Taurasi's team. She did the talking when the team huddled on the court, and she took the shots when Phoenix was trying to catch Sacramento in the closing minutes.

She hit 7 of her 13 field goal attempts and was 3 of 6 from three-point range.

“(She played) a hell of a ballgame,” Graf said.

Taurasi represents the evolution of women's basketball. She's athletic, she can shoot, and she has moves — including a textbook fadeaway jumper — that are prevalent in the NBA rather than the WNBA.

“She plays like a man,” Sulka said.

It's a compliment, and an invitation.

The WNBA is growing up, and Taurasi is the new face of the sport.

Phoenix lost Thursday.

Women's basketball won.

COPYRIGHT 2004, EAST VALLEY TRIBUNE. Used with permission.