Taurasi, Mercury never trail in rout of Fever
PHOENIX -- Diana Taurasi and Stephanie Talbot scored 14 points apiece to lead five Phoenix players in double figures and help the Mercury beat the Indiana Fever 94-74 on Friday night.
Coach Sandy Brondello recorded her franchise-record 100th win with the Mercury.
DeWanna Bonner had 13 points and 10 rebounds, Brittney Griner added 12 and nine and Yvonne Turner scored 10 points for Phoenix (17-14). The Mercury, which won for just the second time since beating the Fever 101-82 on July 15, snapped a five-game home losing streak.
"You know this is a team that can come back out and bring a lot of energy and our focus was," Mercury coach Sandy Brondello said. "You know sometimes we come out of the locker room you know and not playing as locked in as we should be, we get into a bit of a hole so it was a focus but the girls came out and they really executed the scout and all game really for the most part."
Taurasi hit a tie-breaking 3-pointer to spark a 12-0 run that gave Phoenix a 20-8 lead. Victoria Vivians hit a 3-pointer to pull Indiana (5-25) within seven at the end of the first quarter, but Turner and Leilani Mitchell hit 3s 20 seconds apart to make it 28-15 with eight minutes left in the second and the Mercury led by double figures the rest of the way.
Kelsey Mitchell, the second overall selection in April's draft, led the Fever with 20 points, including four 3-pointers. Tiffany Mitchell added a season-best 17 points and tied her career high with nine rebounds.