WNBA finals: Phoenix Mercury defeat Chicago Sky in Game 2, series tied at 1-1

Riding on Brittney Griner’s 29 points, the Phoenix Mercury came roaring back into the WNBA finals series to seal Game 2 91-86 against Chicago Sky on Wednesday. The series is tied at 1-1. 

The score was 79-79 when the fourth quarter finished at the Footprint Center, Phoenix. In the five minutes of overtime, Mercury’s Diana Taurasi scored eight of her 20 game points as the home team added 12 against Chicago’s seven. 

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Taurasi opened overtime with a four-point play and added a 3-pointer that put Phoenix up 89-86 with 1:24 left. She then came up with a huge defensive play, getting a steal with 36 seconds left.

Skylar Diggins-Smith, who had 13 points and 12 assists, sealed it on a layup with 12.8 seconds left.

Vandersloot led the Sky with 20 points and 14 assists. Allie Quigley added 19 points.

Griner kept the Mercury within reach of Chicago during a sluggish start and brought the Phoenix Suns players sitting courtside to their feet with her second career playoff dunk in the first quarter. She scored on a turnaround jump to help give Phoenix a late four-point lead in regulation, but just missed blocking Courtney Vandersloot’s tying layup with 4.4 seconds left. Game 3 is Friday in Chicago.

Phoenix was without guards Kia Nurse (torn ACL) and Sophie Cunningham (calf), and had to play two days after clinching its semifinal series in Las Vegas. The Mercury had more prep time and Cunningham back in the lineup after missing three games, but was disjointed early.

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Chicago, one of the WNBA’s top offensive teams, was at its free-flowing best, its crisp passing setting up open looks. The Sky knocked ’em down early, hitting 7 of their first 12 shots to take an early nine-point lead.

Phoenix went to Griner early and often. The 6-foot-9 center delivered with an early dunk after the Sky inexplicably left her alone in the lane, bringing the Suns players to their feet, and had 14 points by halftime.

Cunningham hit a pair of 3-pointers to bring the Mercury back from the early deficit and hit another after a wicked crossover to help Phoenix pull even at 40-all at halftime.

Chicago revved up its offense again to start the third quarter, building a seven-point lead. Phoenix countered by getting the ball back in to Griner to help the Mercury surge back into the lead in the fourth quarter.

With inputs from the Associated Press