By Mark Carlisle
Twitter: @mwcarlisle

With star Diana Taurasi back on the floor, the Mercury weathered the Breanna Stewart-less Seattle Storm in an 85-80 overtime win in a single-elimination, second-round playoff game Sunday in Seattle. The Mercury advances to its first semifinals appearance since 2018, facing the Aces in a five-game series that starts Tuesday in Las Vegas.

Connecticut will have home court advantage over Chicago in the other semifinal series.

Taurasi, one of Phoenix’s three star players, had missed the last five games, including the first-round win, with an ankle injury. She warmed up Sunday morning and informed coach Sandy Brondello she was good to play 30 minutes before tipoff.

“If I can help in any capacity, I was going to try to play today,” Taurasi said after the game.

Stewart was also day-to-day with a foot injury but couldn’t play.

Taurasi was definitely limited, still hobbled by the injury. She did not have as big an impact in the box score as Phoenix’s other two stars — Taurasi had 14 points, four rebounds and five assists compared to 23, 16 and 4 for center Brittney Griner and 20, 7 and 6 for guard Skylar Diggins-Smith. But the ever-clutch Taurasi came up with some big shots, including scoring six of the Mercury’s 12 points in overtime.

Mercury coach Sandy Brondello said she had to leave Taurasi in for as long as she could play in the single-elimination game.

“She was a little fatigued. Not sure she’ll be able to walk tomorrow,” Brondello joked about her veteran star.

Taurasi returning for Sunday’s game created a potentially historic matchup as it might have been the last time she and Sue Bird stepped on the court together. The two close friends are both long-time stars in the league, former teammates and NCAA champions at Connecticut and have won a record five Olympic gold medals together with Team USA.

Taurasi, 39, plans to play for at least one more year but Bird, 40, says she’ll consider whether to retire or return for another year during the offseason.

Bird commended what her friend Taurasi was able to provide for the Mercury despite the injury.

“You can’t give a player like that open looks whether they’re on half a leg or not,” Bird said.

Seattle coach Noelle Quinn said besides Taurasi’s shooting, she also lifts her teammates with her leadership.

“D gives them automatic confidence, swag, all of the above just by being on the floor,” Quinn said.

Quinn said after the game both Bird and Taurasi have the “clutch gene.”

Bird helped keep Seattle in the game with 16 points and five assists, including hitting a clutch 3 to send the game to overtime. Bird made 4 of 8 from downtown.

Seattle forward Katie Lou Samuelson led the team with a career-high 18 points.

But with Stewart out and after the teams’ last meeting, Phoenix’s focus defensively was on Seattle guard Jewell Loyd. During Phoenix and Seattle’s last regular-season matchup eight days prior, with both Stewart and Taurasi sidelined, Loyd score 37 points and tied a WNBA record, shared by Taurasi, scoring 22 points in the first quarter.

“That was the main part of the game plan today,” Brondello said of stopping Loyd. “…She was No. 1, No. 2, No. 3. We have a lot of respect for the rest of them too, but we thought if we could take the head off the snake so to speak, that would put us in a decent position. But we had to fight like crazy. I mean, what a great game.”

Phoenix stymied Loyd defensively. While Loyd totaled 15 points, she made a dismal 5 of 21 shots and missed all seven 3-pointers she took.

Loyd got hot for one stretch. The Mercury dominated the game early until Seattle came storming back with a 15-0 run in the last five minutes of the half, turning a 12-point deficit into a three-point Seattle lead at halftime. Loyd had a hand in 13 of the 15 points scored during the run, scoring five points and dishing out three assists that led to eight points scored. Three of Loyd’s five assists came during that five-minute stretch.

“You live with putting the ball in the players’ hands who carried you this year,” Quinn said after the game.

The Mercury nearly let the win, and its season, slip away with bad free-throw shooting. The team made just 13 of 24 from the line — 54% versus the team’s 80% rate during the season. The misses included Diggins-Smith missing two shots in the final minute that would have given the Mercury the win in regulation. Griner missed two followed by one miss from Taurasi in overtime for a streak of five straight misses in the clutch, but Phoenix survived it and finished with a streak of three made free throws in the five-point win.

Diggins-Smith (3 of 8) and Griner (1 of 5) accounted for most of the team’s misses. Diggins-Smith shot 82% during the season and Griner shot 85%.

In addition to the two missed clutch free throws, Diggins-Smith had a potential game-winning shot stuffed at the end of regulation. She rebounded from the awful final minute to dish out two skillful assists and make a key defensive stop on Loyd in overtime.

Brondello credited the win largely to the Mercury toughening up its defense down the stretch. Seattle made 41.7% of its shots through three quarters but then made only 28.6% of its shots in the fourth quarter and overtime.

Phoenix’s defensive anchor, as always, was forward Brianna Turner. The lock-down defender had a game-high three blocks, including a stuff of Seattle forward Ezi Magbegor in overtime. The block came with Phoenix down three and led to a Taurasi 3-pointer on the other end. It was a huge swing in the game and the last time the Mercury trailed.

Turner was named to the WNBA’s All-Defensive first team Sunday and finished tied for third in votes for defensive player of the year.

Diggins-Smith said Turner does a lot of thankless jobs on the team and said that Taurasi tells Turner before every game: “‘Be a problem, Breezy. Be a problem.’”

Griner is also always a problem for opposing offenses. She led the league in blocks for the eighth time in her nine-year career and had two blocks Sunday. Griner was named an All-Defensive second teamer Sunday. Griner was fifth in votes for Defensive Player of the Year.

Quinn commended her team for taking a tough Phoenix team to overtime without the team’s best player.

Bird’s last flight?

Taurasi and Bird swapped jerseys after the game. They’d never done the sports tradition with each other so they planned on it before the game, knowing it could be their last chance.

As the duo were interviewed on court after the game, the Seattle crowd began chanting, “One more year.” Taurasi waved her arms to encourage the chant. Bird began to tear up at the crowd’s chant.

Bird said she’d pushed the decision out of her mind this year, saying she’d be unable to focus on basketball if she’d let that emotion creep in.

“The minute I even let myself think about it, it makes me want to cry,” Bird said about the decision to retire.

Taurasi, Diggins-Smith and Griner, who were all Team USA teammates with Bird over the summer, all said there’s no doubt Bird has what it takes physically to play another year. Taurasi, a year Bird’s junior, said it all depends if Bird wants to expend the energy to get her body ready for another season of play.

“At our age, whatever we used to do, it’s times 10,” Taurasi said.

Coach Quinn said the team won’t try to influence Bird one way or another but will support her whatever she chooses.

“It’s Sue’s world,” Quinn said.

Winner takes it all

Since the league brought back single-elimination playoff rounds in 2016, Phoenix is now 9-2 in the winner-take-all games, or 8-1 when Taurasi is on the floor.

Olympians abound

Phoenix and Seattle account for half of Team USA's gold-medal roster from this summer. Phoenix sent Taurasi, Griner and Diggins-Smith to the Olympics and Seattle sent Stewart, Bird and Loyd. The were the only teams to send three players.

Mark Carlisle
Associate Editor | Daily Independent
@mwcarlisle

mcarlisle@iniusa.org

Mark is passionate about accurately informing his readers to what is happening in their community. He also loves reading and writing about sports. Mark has worked for Independent Newsmedia for five years. He married his high school sweetheart, adopted a boxer mix, and awaits his first child.