SAMI WHITCOMB’S CAREER-HIGH 36 POINTS CARRY MERCURY PAST WINGS
Sami Whitcomb had 29 of her career-high 36 points in the first half, Alyssa Thomas had her 12th career regular-season triple-double, and the host Phoenix Mercury beat the Dallas Wings 102-72 Monday to break their first two-game losing streak of the season.
Thomas had 15 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds and Kiana Williams had 17 points off the bench as the Mercury avenged a 98-89 loss at the Wings on Thursday while playing without injured starters Satou Sabally and Kahleah Copper.
Whitcomb, a nine-year veteran, made 12 of 19 field-goal attempts and seven of 11 3-pointers, tying a career high with seven 3-pointers.
JJ Quinerly had 18 points and five assists, Aziaha James had 15 points and Paige Bueckers had 11 points for the Wings, who had won five of seven. They played without starters Arike Ogunbowale and DiJonai Carrington.
Bueckers, who was 3 of 11 from the field, had 58 points when the teams split the first two games of the season series. James had a career-high 28 points in the Wings’ victory Thursday.
Whitcomb’s previous career high was 30 with the New York Liberty on June 26, 2021, when she made seven 3-pointers. Her high this season had been 18.
The Mercury put the game away with a 19-0 run in the third quarter for a 71-42 lead in a game they never trailed. It was tied once, at 4-4.
Phoenix made 14 of 32 3-pointers. They led the league with an average of 10.3 treys per game coming in. The Mercury had 29 assists on 36 field goals while breaking 100 for the third time in five games.
Whitcomb started quickly, hitting a 3-pointer on the Mercury’s first possession and scoring 11 of their first 12 points with three 3-pointers. She had 19 points on 7 of 9 shooting in the first quarter when the Mercury took a 28-19 lead.
Her fifth trey gave the Mercury a 33-21 lead one minute in the second quarter. James’ driving layup midway through the period trimmed the deficit to 37-31, but that was as close as the Wings got. Phoenix closed the first half on a 15-8 run for a 52-39 lead.
The Wings had a 44-43 rebounding edge but committed 18 turnovers and shot 36.0 percent from the field.
Williams had eight points in the third quarter and Whitcomb and Kathryn Westbeld had seven apiece in the third quarter, when the Mercury outscored the Wings 30-17.
ALLISHA GRAY CONTINUES STEADY SCORING IN DREAM WIN OVER VALKYRIES
Allisha Gray scored a game-high 24 points to help the Atlanta Dream post a 90-81 victory over the visiting Golden State Valkyries in College Park, Ga., on Monday.
Naz Hillmon added a season-high 16 points off the bench, while Rhyne Howard notched 15 for the Dream (12-7), who outscored Golden State 26-13 in the final quarter to pull away. Brionna Jones tallied 14 points and eight rebounds and Brittney Griner had 11 points in the win.
Golden State (9-9) was led by Monique Billings’ 19 points, followed by Kayla Thornton’s 15 and Tiffany Hayes’ 12. Veronica Burton and Kate Martin added 11 points apiece for the Valkyries, who dropped a second straight game to begin their four-game road trip.
After the Valkyries held a two-point edge at halftime, Hayes’ layup and triple pushed Golden State’s lead to 55-50 at the 5:15 mark, forcing an Atlanta timeout.
The Dream took a 64-63 lead on Hillmon’s triple with less than a minute left, before Martin’s three and Billings’ layup helped the Valkyries enter the final quarter with a four-point edge.
In the fourth, Howard’s 3-pointer knotted the score at 75 with 5:46 remaining. Gray’s three-point play then gave the Dream a 78-75 edge just over a minute later. Hillmon’s 3-pointer extended the run to 12-0 at the 2:22 mark, as Atlanta’s lead ballooned to 84-75.
Billings’ mid-range jumper with two minutes left snapped a four-plus minute scoring drought for Golden State, cutting the Valkyries’ deficit to seven, but Hillmon responded with a 3-pointer to seal the win.
Golden State connected on five of seven 3-point attempts in the first quarter to take a 26-16 lead after 10 minutes of play.
Atlanta cut into its deficit with a 10-4 run to open the second quarter, which was stamped with Jordin Canada’s mid-range jumper at the 6:49 mark.
After Stephanie Talbot’s basket gave Golden State a 35-30 edge, Atlanta answered with an 8-0 run – including Griner’s six points – to take its first lead.
Golden State finished the first half on an 8-0 run to take a 45-43 halftime-lead. Billings led the Valkyries with 11 first-half points, while Gray paced the Dream with 16.
REPORT: DEWANNA BONNER TO JOIN MERCURY AFTER FEVER SPLIT
WNBA star DeWanna Bonner is returning to where her professional career began and signing with the Phoenix Mercury, ESPN reported Monday.
Terms of their agreement were not yet known, with the report indicating Bonner would sign in the days to come.
Bonner played her first 10 WNBA seasons with the Mercury, who selected her fifth overall in the 2009 draft. She began her illustrious career by helping Phoenix win the 2009 WNBA title and winning three straight Sixth Player of the Year awards in her first three seasons.
Bonner, 37, began this season with the Indiana Fever, who waived her on June 25 so she could pursue a role with another team.
“Despite our shared goals and excitement heading into the season, I felt the fit did not work out and I appreciate the organization’s willingness to grant my request to move on, particularly at this point in my career,” Bonner said in a news release. “I wish the Fever great success as they continue to build around this dynamic group of young players.”
In nine games (three starts) for Indiana, Bonner averaged 7.1 points, 3.8 rebounds and 21.3 minutes per contest, all down from her career averages of 14.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and 30.2 minutes.
Bonner is the active WNBA leader in games played (511) and minutes played (15,441). In the first game of the season, she passed Tina Thompson as the league’s third all-time leading scorer, behind only Diana Taurasi and Tina Charles. She now sits at 7,546 career points.
In Phoenix, Bonner would join a Mercury team that entered Monday’s game against Dallas tied for second in the league standings at 12-6. She would reunite with Alyssa Thomas, her fiancee and former teammate with the Connecticut Sun.
