Liberty’s 18 three-pointers not enough in 99-93 loss to Mercury

PHOENIX (AP) — Brittney Griner and Diana Taurasi each scored 19 points to lead six Phoenix players in double figures and the Mercury beat the New York Liberty 99-93 on Tuesday night in a game that featured a WNBA record 33 made 3-pointers.

Griner made a layup to give Phoenix a 92-89 lead and then blocked a shot by Breanna Stewart at the other end. Taurasi added a 3-pointer to make it 95-91 and Griner put back her own miss with 29.1 seconds left to restore a four-point advantage.

The 33 3-pointers came on 72 attempts, with New York tying the franchise record of 18. The Liberty (12-3), who had an eight-game winning streak snapped, had three players with at least four made 3-pointers, led by Stewart’s 4-of-4 shooting.

Betnijah Laney-Hamilton made New York’s 18th 3-pointer to get within 86-85. But the Liberty missed their final four from long distance to come up just short of a league record.

Phoenix (8-7) earned its first win against the Liberty since Aug. 6, 2022.

Kahleah Copper and Rebecca Allen each added 17 points for Phoenix. Sophie Cunningham had 13 points and Natasha Cloud scored 11.

Stewart scored 28 points and Sabrina Ionescu had 19 points, seven rebounds and eight assists for New York. Jonquel Jones had 17 points, and Kayla Thornton and Laney-Hamilton each added 12. Courtney Vandersloot did not play for a fifth straight game due to personal reasons.

Phoenix went on an 11-0 run late in the second period to take its first lead, 42-41, since it was 20-19. The Mercury led 50-46 at the break