KEY STAT

• The Mercury defense, which ranks first in the WNBA in opponent field goal percentage, held the Sun offense to a season-low 34.6 percent (28-81) from the field. The Mercury protected the pain well holding Connecticut to just 17-for-40 (.425) on shots in the paint while blocking four shots.

HIGHLIGHTS

• With the win the Mercury move to 13-0 on the season when leading thru three quarters.
• Entering the game as the WNBA’s leader in free-throw percentage, the Mercury drew a season-high 26 fouls on its way to making 24 free throws on a season-high 28 attempts from the line (85.7%).
• Phoenix has tied its second best start in franchise history, tying the 14-5 start made by the 2009 squad which lost its 20th game. The team is one win away from taking sole-possession of the second best record thru 20 games in franchise history behind only the 2014 team which went 17-3 to open the season.
• The Mercury move to 13-1 on the season when the ‘Big 3’ of Diana Taurasi (25), Brittney Griner (23) and DeWanna Bonner (12) all score 12-plus points in a game.
• Both Brittney Griner (23) and Diana Taurasi (25) scored 20-plus points in the contest. This is the fifth time this season both players have scored 20-plus points in the same game, and the Mercury hold a 5-0 record in such contests.
• Diana Taurasi, who entered tonight’s game ranked second on the WNBA’s all-time field goals list with 2,624, went 8-for-18 from the field on her way to 25 points. Her eight made field goals gives her 2,632 for her career and propels her past Tina Thompson (2,630) for the top spot in WNBA history.
• DeWanna Bonner pulled down a season-high 13 boards, coming from a career-high 13 defensive rebounds, while adding 12 points to record her second double-double of the season. This brings her career double-double total to 28 which ranks third in Phoenix franchise history behind only teammate Brittney Griner (31) and wife Candice Dupree (32).

The Sun featured a balanced offensive attack in the game with four players scoring in double figures, and all 10 active players making at-least one field goal. In total 17 of 18 players who entered the game made a field goal, with Stephanie Talbot (0-for0) being the only player not to record a field goal.

SUN HEAD COACH Curt miller

“Tough loss for us tonight. We’re playing with two starters down. We left a lot of baskets out there; some of the turnovers hurt us. We were around 40 percent in the paint tonight. Some of that is a credit to their length but we left a lot of baskets around the pain tonight. I appreciated our second unit’s movement. I appreciated that we kept grinding.”

(On changing game plan from last loss in Phoenix…)

“Just energy. It was a back-to-back the last time. This is the third game in five days. We had a little bit more energy than we did last time. Again, we were down people last time. You know, it’d be fun to try to play Phoenix at full strength, but it is what it is.”

(On playing Phoenix without Sancho Lyttle and Camille Little…)

“We were concerned about Bonner at the 4 because now she can spread you out. We did good things but obviously without two veteran power forwards, they will have to learn to play differently too.

Sun Forward Chiney Ogwumike 11 points | 3 REBOUNDS

(On playing Phoenix without Sancho Lyttle and Camille Little…)

“I think we didn’t change our game plan, we just tried to do what we do. I think Phoenix had energy. This is our third game in five days, we’re soldiering on. But the fact that they were fresh and playing in front of their home crowd I think it mattered to them. And for us, we just have to be resilient on the road. Some days it’s going to go your way, some days it’s not. But I’m proud of our team because our bench gave us great energy.”

(On what allowed a fourth quarter comeback…)

““We shared the ball, we were patient. We just never give up. Our team is a team that even though we get down, we’re never out. I’m really proud of our team for fighting every second of the game. The more depth you have on a roster, the better you’re going to be so I think these little trials are helping us.”

Sun Guard Jasmine Thomas 11 points | 3 rebounds

(On playing Phoenix without Sancho Lyttle and Camille Little…)

“We were just trying to exploit those mismatches. They switch a lot, but they are kind of long so it’s kind of hard to say that switches with them are actually mismatches. If we could pound it inside when we got the matchup we wanted, we wanted to do that. If we could get them on the move, we wanted to do that, with them being short manned.”

(On what allowed a fourth quarter comeback…)

“I mean, just our energy and moving the ball. Rachel got some steals and some finishes, got to the free throw line. Just continuing to play together and chip away at that lead.”

Mercury Head Coach SANDY BRONDELLO

(On the game…)

“We didn’t execute some of the plays. We have to remember that Angel has not played together with BG, and DB has not played much at the four. We did have good parts of the game where we executed well. When we’re locked in defensively that shows. We can lock in when we need to and execute when we have to. BG got into foul trouble but Angel came in and gave us really good minutes at both ends of the floor. Not scoring, I’m talking about offensive rebounds, getting us extra possessions, and playing good defense at the other end.”

(On Bonner at the four…)

“I thought it was the best way to go because Angel had not played much. We thought DB might be an advantage for us. She is very capable, she has played the four overseas regularly, and we thought she was a good matchup for Jonquel Jones. Once they started playing two bigs together we started using Angel a little more, and it was good at the end of the game. We went big and put DB back at the three and Angel at the four, and that was a good lineup for us at the end of the game.”

(On coaching challenges of an odd schedule…)

“We are very busy. We love what we do and the assistants do a great job putting the clips together for the players to watch. We spend a lot time watching film. Our job is to prepare the team, and we just get into a routine. We have been good on the road, we don’t mind the road, but it is nice to win at home. We have not won as many as we would like, but we go back on the road soon so it is just one game at a time. We have to be ready to play every single one, and get the rest where we can.”

Mercury Center BRITTNEY GRINER 23 points | 6 REBOUNDS

(On changing lineups…)

“We have been saying we’re deep. We have bodies, and it showed today. It was good. It was a different look for the other team to guard, and a different look for us. I think we did a good job with those different lineups, and we went and got the win. We did what we had to do.”

(On fourth quarter defense…)

“Just keeping it the same. Make them work for everything, pack the paint, and not let their shooters get any open shots.”

Mercury Guard Yvonne Turner 9 points | 5 ASSISTS

(On changing roll…)

“We are all professionals. We do what we need to do to stay ready, and when the time comes we have to step up and contribute.”

(On tonight’s win…)

“I think it came down to us executing and getting stops on defense. They only scored three points in the last four minutes, and that helped us out a lot.”