Phoenix Mercury star Alyssa Thomas missed a layup at the buzzer that would have secured a clutch win against the New York Liberty in Game 1 on Sunday.
But, postgame, she remained noticeably upbeat.
“I made that shot thousands of times,” said the six-time All-Star. “For me, it’s no big deal. Of course, it would’ve been nice if it went down, but there’s still a lot of basketball to play.”
That calmness carried over to Wednesday night’s must-win Game 2, a bounce-back 86-60 win at Barclays Center.
The Mercury handed the Liberty the second-largest playoff loss by a defending champion in WNBA history. And, they set a new mark for the largest margin (26 points) a team has ever won by while facing elimination in the WNBA playoffs.
How did they do it? It was a full team effort.
Alyssa Thomas, Satou Sabally led the way in the bounce-back win
Thomas, the WNBA’s all-time leader in triple-doubles, posted 15 points, 7 assists, and 5 rebounds, while her co-star, Satou Sabally, bounced back from an abysmal 2-17 shooting night in Game 1 to pour in 15 points (5-11 FG), 7 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 steals.
“I think it’s really important not to focus on headlines that focus on negativity,” Sabally said of bouncing back from a tough Game 1. “I’m a great player and I know that was not who I am.”
Mercury veterans Kahleah Copper and DeWanna Bonner added 14 points apiece, while Kathryn Westbeld added 10 points.
Defensively, the Mercury came out flying out of the gate. Only one Liberty player reached double-digits, backup center Emma Meesseman, who scored 11 points. New York shot 30.2% from the field and turned the ball over 15 times. Breanna Stewart, playing on a sprained MCL suffered Sunday, was held to just 6 points on 2-6 shooting. Sabrina Ionescu tallied 9 points on 3-13 shooting. Jonquel Jones, last year’s Finals MVP, finished with 7 points on 3-9 shooting.
”Every possession, loose ball, rebound — we were fighting like it was the last one,” Thomas said. “We weren’t ready for our season to be over.”
Mercury head coach Nate Tibbetts praised Thomas, who has been the team’s most reliable player all season long.
”That’s a beautiful mind,” he said. “She’s just a savant when it comes to knowing the game.”
Phoenix will have to do it again to advance to the WNBA semi-finals, where they’ll face the Minnesota Lynx. The Lynx defeated the Golden State Valkyries 75-74 on Wednesday, becoming the only team to advance out of the first round in two games.
A decisive Game 3 between the Liberty and the Mercury will be played on Friday night back in Phoenix at 9pm ET.
