New York Liberty (13-18, 8-8 Eastern Conference) at Phoenix Mercury (12-19, 6-10 Western Conference)
Phoenix; Saturday, 10 p.m. EDT
BOTTOM LINE: Two of the league's top scorers, Skylar Diggins-Smith and Sabrina Ionescu, meet when Phoenix and New York take the court. Diggins-Smith ranks fourth in the WNBA averaging 19.2 points per game and Ionescu is eighth in the league averaging 17.5 points per game.
The Mercury are 9-5 in home games. Phoenix has a 2-2 record in one-possession games.
The Liberty are 5-9 in road games. New York gives up 82.7 points to opponents and has been outscored by 3.1 points per game.
The teams meet for the third time this season. The Liberty won 89-69 in the last matchup on July 31.
TOP PERFORMERS: Diggins-Smith is averaging 19.2 points, 5.5 assists and 1.6 steals for the Mercury. Diana Taurasi is averaging 19.4 points over the last 10 games for Phoenix.
Ionescu is averaging 17.5 points, 7.1 rebounds and 6.4 assists for the Liberty. Natasha Howard is averaging 16.6 points over the last 10 games for New York.
LAST 10 GAMES: Mercury: 4-6, averaging 80.1 points, 31.7 rebounds, 19.4 assists, 8.8 steals and 5.7 blocks per game while shooting 40.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 85.9 points per game.
Liberty: 4-6, averaging 80.7 points, 34.7 rebounds, 21.5 assists, 7.0 steals and 3.8 blocks per game while shooting 42.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 83.1 points.
INJURIES: Mercury: Kia Nurse: out (knee).
Liberty: Betnijah Laney: out (knee), Jocelyn Willoughby: out (quad).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
