WNBA Round-Up: Brittney Griner’s 29 points and 11 rebounds helped the Phoenix Mercury beat the Los Angeles Sparks 78-72 on Sunday.
Griner shot 12 of 18 from the field for 22 points, five assists, and four rebounds, while Diana Taurasi shot 7 of 13 from the field, including two of six from three-point range, for 22 points, five assists, and four rebounds.
Moriah Jefferson led the Mercury (4-14) with 11 points and eight assists as they snapped a three-game losing run and won for the second time in 11 games.
BIG TIME GAME FOR BG 💪
Brittney Griner had herself a game, tying a season-high with 29 PTS, and adding 11 REB for a tuff double-double performance in @PhoenixMercury's win over the Sparks #MoreThanGame pic.twitter.com/83OyfBQdpi
— WNBA (@WNBA) July 10, 2023
The Mercury made 30 of 63 (47.6%) field goals, including five of 17 from three-point range. Phoenix had a 37-30 rebounding advantage over the Sparks.
Nneka Ogwumike led Los Angeles (7-12) with 20 points and 14 rebounds, while Jordin Canada chipped in with 16 points. Azura Stevens had 13 points and eight rebounds for the Sparks, who have now lost five straight games. Jasmine Thomas had 10 points.
The Sparks hit 26 of 70 field goals (37.1%), including eight of 21 from beyond the arc. With less than five minutes left and behind 68-57, the Sparks went on a 13-4 run to get within 72-70 after Stevens split a pair of free throws with 1:21 left.
With 1:02 remaining, Destanni Henderson grabbed the ball from Griner, but the Mercury regained possession after Griner won a jump ball against Stevens after Phoenix won a coach’s challenge on a Taurasi foul that was reversed. With 45.1 seconds left, Taurasi made it a four-point game with a pair of free throws.
BG dunking will never get old 😤 https://t.co/q8EIcPnrnM
— Shey Peddy (@SheyP11) July 10, 2023
Following Canada’s two free throws with 3:43 left in the second quarter, the Mercury went on a 9-3 run to grab a 42-36 halftime lead. Before halftime, Griner led Phoenix with 16 points, while Ogwumike led the Sparks with 12.
In other news, the Atlanta Dream upset the Chicago Sky 88-77, with Rhyne Howard scoring 23 of her 32 points in the second half and Cheyenne Parker adding 18 points and 11 rebounds.
Kelsey Plum scored a game-high 40 points on just 18 shot attempts to help the Las Vegas Aces end the Minnesota Lynx’s five-game winning streak with a 113-89 rout in Minneapolis, while Arike Ogunbowale scored 28 points, including 14 in the fourth quarter, to help the visiting Dallas Wings beat the Indiana Fever 77-76.
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