Connecticut Sun and Phoenix Mercury win – WNBA Roundup July 01, 2011 (Part 2)
Connecticut Sun started the game well, outplaying the Seattle Storm 18-13 in the first quarter and led by 45-33 at the half.
The Seattle Storm coach Brian Agler praised the fantastic performance of the Connecticut in the first half and said, "They did a good job defensively in the first half against us and we got stagnant.” "We didn't play the game as
well as we could have. They were scoring off their defence a few times.”
Seattle made a comeback in the third quarter but Connecticut still managed to take a, eight-point lead, 59-51, heading into the fourth. Storm kept on fighting and put the game at a manageable 72-70 deficit with eight seconds to
go in the last quarter. However, Connecticut scored three consecutive points in the following stretch to seal the victory.
Phoenix Mercury 97 - Chicago Sky 84
Diana Taurasi racked up 24 points, on a shooting 11 of 12 from the line, and dished out six assists as the Phoenix Mercury defeated the Chicago Sky 97-84 at US Airways Center. Phoenix also set a franchise record for the most free
throw converted with a 42 of 45 shooting performance.
The night turned out to be a scoring extravaganza as five players of both teams reached double figures in the points scored. Kara Braxton played one of her best games this season with 15 points and five rebounds while Penny Taylor
finished with 14 points, seven rebounds and two steals for the Mercury, who have won five of their last six games.
Braxton was pleased with her sizzling performance as she said, "I'm glad they had confidence in me today." "When I do get the opportunity to get the ball, and it's going good, they are going to keep feeding me and feeding me."
DeWanna Bonner came off the bench with 11 points and three rebounds while guard Marie Ferdinand-Harris had 10 points in the victory.
Epiphanny Prince led Chicago with 19 points and six assists. The player hit 5 for 10 from the field and 8 for 8 from free throw line.
Courtney Vandersloot added 14 points and Michelle Snow chipped in with 12 points and seven rebounds in the loss. Sylvia Fowles also scored 12 points and five rebounds while Tamera Young finished with 10 points and four rebounds
in the third straight defeat for Sky.
Chicago got off to a monstrous start and held a 13-1 lead with 05:16 to go in the first quarter. Mercury bounced back though and Taurasi’s basket with about two minutes to go in the frame made it a five –point contest, 21-16. However,
Sky scored eight unanswered points in the last two minutes to take a 29-16 advantage into the second quarter.
Mercury made a huge surge in the second quarter and outscored the visiting team 33-20 to cut deficit to just one, 49-48, at halftime. Mercury then limited Chicago to just 15 points in the third quarter and secured a nine-point
lead, 73-64, into the final stanza. There was no looking back for Phoenix after that.
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