INDIANAPOLIS, IN, October 5, 2009 -- The Phoenix Mercury have been in this situation before. Down 2-1 to the Indiana Fever in the 2009 WNBA Finals, the Mercury will be facing their fourth elimination game in this year’s playoffs. They also found themselves down 2-1 in 2007 WNBA Finals before rallying to win that series in five.

The difference between Wednesday’s Game 4 and the previous win-or-go-home scenarios this season is that all three came at home and this time around the Mercury will have to fight for their survival on the road. The stakes are also a little higher this time.

The somber reality of the situation was evident as Phoenix took the practice court on Monday following Sunday’s devastating one-point defeat in Game 3, a contest in which they battled until the very end. Mercury guard/forward Cappie Pondexter even admitted that everyone on the team has been quiet and seemingly upset since, and guard Diana Taurasi believes an attitude adjustment could go a long way.

“We play at our best when we are loose and having fun out there and that’s when we play the most creative and effective basketball,” said Taurasi. “We’re going to have to get back to that. I think we’ve lost it maybe a little bit. Sometimes you get caught up in the end result without going through every little step.”

In the post-game press conference following Sunday’s loss, Pondexter said that she thought the team had to be stronger mentally. When asked to elaborate about that at practice Monday, Pondexter obliged.

“We’re only promised one game,” said Pondexter. “We can say, ‘Ah, man, we’re down 2-1,’ and if we’re at that place, we can kind of fold. You have to mentally prepare yourself and say, ‘You know what? Our backs are against the wall and we’re going to end up fighting.’ And that’s what I mean when I say it’s mental right now.”

Phoenix coach Corey Gaines agrees.

“The game’s always mental,” said Gaines. “In any sport the game is 90 percent mental.”

And with all experience and talent the Mercury have on their roster, evening the series on the road may not be so daunting as some might assume, despite the raucous atmosphere that was prevalent in Game 3 at a sold-out Conseco Fieldhouse and figures to be back again for Game 4. Phoenix won the deciding Game 5 of the ’07 finals in Detroit (OK, Auburn Hills), and the core from that group remains on this team. And players like Pondexter, Taurasi and Penny Taylor, to name a few, have been in big games before, some of which were survive-and-advance situations, and seem to thrive on it.

Another aspect that could work in Phoenix’s favor is having two days off until Game 4, which could help them get over the Game 3 loss, give them more time to game plan and work towards quelling Indiana’s momentum a bit.

“I think it helps everyone,” said Taurasi about having two days off. “At this point in the season everyone’s a little banged up. But if it was up to me, I’d play right now. After a game like that you want to get back on the court as quickly as possible.”

As for tangible things the Mercury need to improve upon, Gaines said he needs to do a better job of putting his team in a position to get shots, especially in one key area.

“I need to get my team to the free throw line and shoot more free throws, “ said Gaines. “We shot zero free throws in the fourth quarter (of Game 3). So I need to get them in better position to get free throws. That’s my fault.”

After each loss in the series Gaines has been quick to shoulder the blame and deflect attention away from his players, for they are his schemes. But the consensus with his players seems to be that Indiana has succeeded at preventing the Mercury from catching fire from the perimeter (Phoenix shot just 3-of-17 from three-point land Sunday), and when Phoenix has been able to get open looks, it hasn’t capitalized.

“Indiana does a great job of denying our wings out so high,” said Pondexter. “When we do try to penetrate they are sending the weak-side help. So we’re either trying to force a shot or we’re forced to pass it out.

“When we’re open we just have to take advantage of it. Diana had a lot of great looks last night. I know any given night she’ll make those. Unfortunately, she wasn’t able to hit some shots. I wasn’t able to hit some shots towards the end like I normally do. Those are shots we’ve got to make.”

“I think we’re getting really good looks, maybe to a point where sometimes it’s harder to shoot when you’re wide open,” said Taurasi. “But that’s neither here nor there. We need to focus on playing smart basketball. Those things all come as a result of playing smart and hard.”

January is Ms. October

One player the Mercury may not have expected to be such a factor for the Fever in this series is rookie point guard Briann January, who averaged a mere 6.9 points and 2.9 assists per game during the regular season. But January has been the ex-factor for the Fever in the Finals and was responsible for Game 3’s turning point by scoring seven straight points to close out the third quarter. She finished with 17 points off the bench Sunday, which matched a career-high, after totaling 16 points in Game 2 and 11 points and seven assists in the opener.

“She’s done a great job of knocking open shots down,” said Pondexter. “When she’s open, and we left her open numerous times, she’s made us pay for it. When you’re big-time, that’s what happens. She’s starting to show everybody what she’s made of.

“She doesn’t play like a rookie. She’s focused. She brings a different intensity level to the Indiana Fever. For us, we need to focus in on her and respect her as we do Katie (Douglas), Catch (Tamika Catchings), Ebony (Hoffman) and Tammy (Sutton-Brown).”

Bonner Held Back in Game 3

Sixth Woman of the Year DeWanna Bonner revealed she was a little under the weather Sunday with a cold and that prevented her from seeing as much action on the court as she usually does. After playing 25 minutes in the opener and 20 minutes in Game 2, Bonner only logged nine minutes in Game 3 and totaled just two points on 1-of-3 shooting with one rebound, two turnovers and two fouls.

“I’m OK now,” said Bonner. “I’ll be ready to play in the next game.”