Connect with us
Burn+

Phoenix Mercury

Kahleah Copper shines with 34 points, Mercury prevail in 104-96 win over Wings

Kahleah Copper marked her WNBA-leading sixth game with 30-plus points as she had 34 in the Phoenix Mercury’s 104-96 victory over the Dallas Wings on Wednesday night.

Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!

All five starters for the Mercury (10-10) scored in double digits, including Brittney Griner who finished with 24 and Diana Taurasi with 16. Natasha Cloud recorded a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds.

Natasha Howard scored a career-high of 36 points for Dallas (4-16) whose losing streak has extended to three consecutive games. Howard and Arike Ogunbowale combined for 62 of the Wings’ 96 points in the defeat.

Mercury start game with huge offensive splash

Right out the gate, the Mercury surged when they got the looks they wanted to shoot and converted. Along with an 18-9 run, Phoenix led 27-18 off of going 10-for-17 (58.8%) from the field and 3-for-5 (60%) from three in the first quarter.

Carrying on that same tempo and energy over into the second quarter, Copper was near-automatic as she picked her spots and scored 17 points in the first half. Dallas did cut the deficit to nine after a few spurts of offense courtesy of 14 points by Howard.

“I was having fun, I was aggressive, I was playing defense,” Copper said. “It is easier to play off of our defense and didn’t turn the ball over.”

From the get-go, the game quickly turned into a shootout rather than defense being a key factor. The Mercury fired at a 36-for-65 (55.4%) clip from the field and a highly efficient 11-for-23 (47.8%) from three overall. While they went 5-for-17 (29.4%) from deep, the Wings dominated on the inside by outrebounding Phoenix 34-24 and outscoring them 42-36 in the paint.

The battle between Copper and Howard demonstrated just how strong both players can be despite having two different playstyles. Howard presented a strong presence in the paint as she was fighting for every rebound and capitalizing off of them while Copper got into a consistent rhythm and couldn’t stopped offensively.

“They’ve got a tough matchup with Howard at the four,” Tibbetts said. “She shot 17 free throws, that always helps. And then Kah getting another 30 points, she leads the league in that which is awesome and a credit to her. I thought she had some pop again tonight and she was attacking, getting downhill.”

Wings grab momentum, cause nail-biting finish

Down by as much as 18 at one stage of the game, Dallas displayed a sense of urgency which ended up helping them snatch the momentum from the Mercury’s grasp. From the 8:00 mark of the third quarter to the end of it, the Wings went on a 29-20 run to claw themselves to being down only 83-76.

With a costly third quarter collapse on Sunday against the Indiana Fever where they were up by nine at halftime, the Mercury needed to show resilience so that they would not let another lead slip away.

Tibbetts called a timeout which proved to be crucial as he noticed several defensive breakdowns that his team was getting punished on. Dallas was taking advantage of the defensive transition lapses by Phoenix that resulted in them having open lanes toward the basket.

Identifying that the Mercury has to continue to pile on the pressure instead of coasting, forward Rebecca Allen claimed that the team has to improve in the third quarters of games.

“For us, it is making sure when we get those leads and maintaining them,” Allen said. “I think that is something we really need to focus on being up 10 or more and constantly just trying to build on that rather than losing that lead. I think the third quarter is going to be a big thing for us to focus on.”

Putting the nail in the coffin, Copper would connect on a late 3-pointer off of a pass by Taurasi which ultimately secured the victory for Phoenix.

Every time these two teams face each other, they are always a dogfight despite both teams having two different types of seasons thus far. Phoenix is in the No. 6 seed of the WNBA, good enough for a playoff spot if the postseason were to have started today. Meanwhile, the Wings are dead last in the league with a 4-16 record and are 1-9 in their last 10 games.

On May 25, Ogunbowale had a monstrous 40-point performance to power Dallas to a 107-92 victory. In the last matchup on June 9, the Wings forced both overtime and double OT before Copper became a late-game hero with eight points late, guiding the Mercury to a 97-90 win.

When coming up with a reason why these two teams always have games decided by fine margins against one another, Tibbetts acknowledged that every WNBA team has unique elements compared to others and Dallas is no different.

“They have just been complete down to the wire, Tibbetts said on the Mercury’s tight matchups with the Wings. “We were just saying we were glad it didn’t go to overtime because it feels like every time we play them, it’s headed that way. In this league, you match up against different teams and they present different challenges just like you do for them. For whatever reason besides that first game against them, we’ve had some battles and I am so proud and our group.”

Next Games

Mercury: Away at Los Angeles Sparks (4-15) | July 7 | 4 p.m. PT

Wings: Home vs. Atlanta Dream (7-11) | July 5 | 4:30 p.m. PT

2024 WNBA All-Star rosters are officially confirmed, 3 Mercury will represent in Phoenix

*Get the BEST Phoenix sports insider information, and exclusive content. SIGN UP HERE to unlock our premium content!*

Reporter Alec Cipollini covers ASU Athletics, the Phoenix Mercury and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on his X account, @AlecCipollini

Related Topics

Burn City Radio

More in Phoenix Mercury