Mercury Rally to Steal Game 2 โฃin Historic Comeback Against Lynx
In a stunning display of resilience, the phoenixโ Mercury overcame a 17-point deficit to defeat the โMinnesota Lynx 90-88 in โGame 2 of their WNBA playoff series on Tuesday.โฃ The โขvictory, โsecured on the Lynx’s home court, levels the best-of-five series 1-1 asโ it shifts to Phoenix for Games 3 and 4.
The Lynx, the No. 1 seed after a dominant regular season record of 32-10,appeared to be in โcontrol early,but the Mercury,who finished the regular season 27-17 as the fourth โฃseed,refused to concede. A fiery halftime addressโ from Mercury head coach Vanessa Tibbetts sparked a โimportant shift in momentum, though players remained tight-lipped about the โspecifics ofโค the message, describing it asโค a moment of accountability.
A pivotalโ moment came in the third quarter with a “blood timeout” necessitated by an injury to Lynx player Napheesaโ Collier andโ requiring cleanup on the court. Following the extended break, the Mercury began theirโค climb โback, fueled by a strongโ performance from their bench. Forward Kathryn Westbeld,โข a 29-year-old rookie, proved instrumental, contributing 8 points, โค4 rebounds, and โฃ4 steals.
“Kat was huge for us. Kat โcame in and gave us incredible minutes. She had โhuge shots,” said mercury guard โSamiโ Whitcomb, who added 13 points, including a crucial 3-pointer to tieโข the game at โคthe end of regulation. “Andโค I feel like that, really, we all lifted.We lifted defensively. We got โฃstops.” The bench collectivelyโข scored 25 pointsโ for Phoenix.
Minnesota struggled to respond, committing 10 turnovers in the second half andโค losing the battle โฃfor offensive rebounds. Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve attributed the collapse to a lack of execution. “I think the โฃlack of executionโ led us to the uncertaintyโฆsimple things, pass โand catch, and โjustโ being โable to dribble the ball off the court and we’re throwing it โฃout โof bounds,” she explained. Theโ Lynx starters accounted for all but three of their points on the night,โข and shot a dismal 7-for-28 fromโ beyond the arc.
Phoenix, now with momentumโค on their side, โขwill rely on the core of Brittney Griner, Diana Taurasi, โand Sophie Sabally – who matched Collier with a game-high 24 points – as theโ series moves to Arizona. Griner’s competitive spirit was on full display, even leading to a heated exchangeโ with Collier after a foul late in the game. While Griner downplayed the specifics of the interaction, her intensity embodies the Mercury’s determination.
Griner, with 52 career playoff games under her belt,โข is focused on securing a WNBA championship. Game 3โ is โscheduled for Friday night.
