top-plays-of-the-day-09-23-2025

Top Plays of the Day, 09/23/2025

Semis Game Recap

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Game Recap: Mercury vs. Lynx (9/23/25)

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Phoenix Mercury Top Plays vs. Minnesota Lynx

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Minnesota Lynx vs. Phoenix Mercury - Game Highlights

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Top 10 Plays of the Week

AP Recap

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Courtney Williams scored a game-high 23 points, Kayla McBride scored 21, and Napheesa Collier added 18 points and nine rebounds as the top-seeded Minnesota Lynx defeated the Phoenix Mercury 82-69 on Sunday in Game 1 of the best-of-five semifinal series.
The Lynx trailed by as many as nine and faced a seven-point deficit at halftime. As Phoenix threatened to even the game down the stretch, it was Williams and McBride making big shots to keep the Mercury at bay. McBride drilled a shot from deep to put the Lynx up 73-67 with under four minutes to play, and Minnesota never looked back.
Game 2 is Tuesday in Minneapolis before the teams head to Phoenix for Game 3 on Friday.
After surrendering 47 points in the first half, Minnesota’s players came together at halftime to brainstorm ways to slow Phoenix down. The veteran Williams was a vocal voice in that conversation, according to head coach Cheryl Reeve.
Williams then went out and provided a spark for the Lynx in the second half, recording a career-high five steals while scoring 12 of her points after halftime.
“When she’s out there hooping and confident, it’s contagious,” McBride said of Williams. “It just becomes a lot of fun out there playing the game within the game.”
Kahleah Copper led Phoenix with 22 points and Alyssa Thomas had 18. Mercury leading scorer Satou Sabally (16.3 ppg) was held to just 10 points.
Collier, who finished second to Las Vegas’ A’ja Wilson in <a class="Link AnClick-LinkEnhancement" href="https://apnews.com/article/wnba-mvp-wilson-aces-9dbf1eb3125c59797f4fd57737684b01" data-gtm-enhancement-style="LinkEnhancementA">the WNBA MVP voting</a> announced earlier in the day, had 10 first-quarter points but didn’t score at all in the second quarter. She scored eight points in the third as the Lynx evened the game at 59 heading to the final quarter.
Phoenix did its damage almost solely in the paint in the first half. Of the Mercury’s 47 first-half points, 42 came in the paint as Minnesota couldn’t find an answer defensively.
The Mercury scored just seven points in the paint after halftime and had only 22 total second-half points.
“They really did a good job defensively in the second half,” said Mercury coach Nate Tibbetts. “They turned it up at that end.”
Sunday’s game was a quick turnaround for fourth-seeded Phoenix. After <a class="Link AnClick-LinkEnhancement" href="https://apnews.com/article/liberty-mercury-score-playoffs-3f8413585d7e52ba96c12561ea9ea684" data-gtm-enhancement-style="LinkEnhancementA">beating the defending champion New York Liberty</a> on Friday night, the Mercury flew to Minnesota on Saturday.
The same two teams faced each other four times during the regular season, with Minnesota winning three of those matchups. But the Lynx hadn’t seen a healthy Mercury lineup before Sunday. Copper didn’t play in any of those four games, and Thomas and Sabally each missed at least one game against Minnesota.
“The other (Mercury) teams that we saw didn’t look anything like this, so we knew it would be a learning experience for us,” said Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve.

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Game Recap: Phoenix Mercury vs. Minnesota Lynx (Semi-Finals, Game 1)

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Kahleah Copper with 22 Points vs. Minnesota Lynx

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Game Recap: Mercury vs. Lynx (9/21/25)

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top-plays-of-the-day-09-21-2025

Top Plays of the Day, 09/21/2025

Latest

Kahleah Copper

2022 (Chicago)
<ul>
<li>Re-signed with Chicago Sky on a multi-year deal in January</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">Named to her second WNBA All-Star team in 2022 </li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">Led the Sky in scoring in 2022</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">No. 13 in league 2022 points per game (15.7)</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">Reached 250 career assists 8/7 vs. Connecticut</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">Secured her third career double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds on 7/29 vs. New York</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">Reached 2,000 career points on 7/23 vs. New York </li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">Reached 600 career rebounds this 2022 season </li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">Reached 500 career defensive rebounds on 6/29 vs. Connecticut</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">Reached 200 games played on 7/2 vs. Phoenix</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400">Reached 100 career steals on 5/21 vs. Phoenix</li>
</ul>
2021 (Chicago)
<ul>
<li>Awarded the 2021 WNBA Finals MVP after posting averages of 17 PPG, 5.5 RPG and 1.3 SPG during the four-game series</li>
<li>Named a WNBA All-Star for the first time in her career</li>
<li>Scored in double-figures in all 10 of the Sky’s playoff games and dropped over 20 points in four games</li>
<li>Started all 32 games for the Chicago Sky and led the team in scoring with 14.4 PPG, good for 18th in the league. Also led team in minutes at 30.8 MPG</li>
<li>Tied a career-high with 26 points against the Seattle Storm on August 8, 2021</li>
<li>Playoff career-high is also 26 points recorded in a Game 3 win over the Connecticut Sun</li>
</ul>
2020 (Chicago)
<ul>
<li>Appeared in each game of the 2020 season, making 22 starts</li>
<li>Was one of three Sky players to start in every game (Vandersloot, Quigley)</li>
<li>Averaged career-highs in PPG (14.8), RPG (5.5), SPG (1.0) and APG (2.1)</li>
<li>Shot a career-best 49.6% from the field</li>
<li>Scored 20+ points on three separate occasions, the most in a single season in her career</li>
<li>Scored in double figures in 20 of 22 games</li>
<li>Averaged 31.3 MPG, a career-high and second on the Chicago Sky</li>
<li>Recorded a career-high four steals against Connecticut (8/8)</li>
<li>Produced a career-best six assists vs. Connecticut (8/14)</li>
<li>Posted a career-high 26 points against Indiana (8/22)</li>
<li>Played a career-high in minutes (37) against Los Angeles (9/6)</li>
</ul>
2019 (Chicago)  
<ul>
<li>Played all 34 games for the Sky off the bench in 2019</li>
<li>Averaged 6.7 PPG, 1.9 RPG and 14.8 MPG</li>
<li>Scored in double-figures on seven different occasions</li>
<li>In playoff play, she averaged nine points per game and 75% shooting, including 16 points in the Sky’s second-round competition against the Las Vegas Aces on Sept 15</li>
</ul>
2018 (Chicago)
<ul>
<li>Started in two out of 31 games played</li>
<li>Ranked third on the team in three-point percentage (37.5 percent)</li>
<li>Scored a then career-high 23 points in July 20 win against Dallas</li>
</ul>
2017 (Chicago)
<ul>
<li>Acquired by the Sky in a February 2017 trade with the Washington Mystics</li>
<li>Started in 10 out of 34 games played</li>
<li>Ranked sixth on team in scoring with 6.7 PPG</li>
<li>In games started, Copper averaged 10.5 points, 2.4 rebounds, 50 percent shooting, and 20.5 minutes per game</li>
</ul>
2016 (Washington)
<ul>
<li>Drafted No. 7 overall by the Washington Mystics in the 2016 WNBA Draft</li>
<li>Started in three out of 30 games played</li>
<li>Ranked ninth on team in scoring with 6.2 PPG</li>
<li>Ranked fourth on team in rebounds with 3.1 PPG</li>
<li>Finished the season first overall in three-point field goal percentage (.467) and sixth overall in field goal percentage (.471)</li>
</ul>
INTERNATIONAL
<ul>
<li>2021-2022: CB Perfumerias Avenida | Spain – Liga Femenina de Baloncesto
<ul>
<li style="list-style-type: none">
<ul>
<li>Awarded the EuroLeague MVP and named to All-EuroLeague Women First Team after averaging 22.5 PPG and 6.1 RPG</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>2020-21: Elitzur Ramla | Israel</li>
<li>2019-20: InvestInTheWest Enea Gorzow Wielkopolski | Poland
<ul>
<li>Earned FIBA’s Top Performer honors and was voted MVP when she dropped 33 points, 11 rebounds, two assists and grabbed four steals to kick start her team’s EuroCup campaign</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>2018-19: OGM Orman Genclik Ankara | Turkey</li>
<li>2016-17: Castor Braine | Belgium</li>
</ul>
COLLEGE (Rutgers University)
<ul>
<li>Ranked No. 3 on Rutgers’ career points chart behind only future WNBA stars Cappie Pondexter and Sue Wicks</li>
<li>Fourth Scarlet Knight woman to top 1,800 career points</li>
<li>2015 (Senior)
<ul>
<li>All-Big Ten First Team pick (coaches and media)</li>
<li>One of 20 named to the Drysdale Award Watch List as nation’s top player.</li>
<li>Scored in double figures in 30 games.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>2014 (Junior)
<ul>
<li>Second Team All-Big Ten (coaches and media) after being Rutgers’ leading scorer for second straight season</li>
<li>Was 7th in Big Ten in scoring. reached double-figure scoring in all but four contests; led Scarlet Knights in scoring in 15 games.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>2013 (Sophomore)
<ul>
<li>Named WNIT’s Most Valuable Player and First Team All-American Athletic Conf. Excelled twice against eventual NCAA champ UConn, putting up 20 and 22-pt. efforts vs. Huskies.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>2012 (Freshman)
<ul>
<li>Named to BIG EAST All-Freshman Team.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
PERSONAL:
<ul>
<li>Kahleah Copper (born August 28, 1994) is a guard/forward for the Chicago Sky. She played college basketball at Rutgers. A McDonald’s All-American prep player at Philadelphia’s Prep Charter, she chose Rutgers in order to be closer to mom, Leticia, who was undergoing treatment for breast cancer.</li>
</ul>