Liberty Hand Mercury 3rd Consecutive Loss

The third time was the charm for the New York Liberty, as they beat the Phoenix Mercury for the first time this season behind a dominant second half performance.

Jul 25, 2025; Brooklyn, New York, USA; New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu (20) shoots over Phoenix Mercury guard Sami Whitcomb (33) in the first quarter at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images / Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

The Phoenix Mercury came out strong against the defending champion New York Liberty but the game got away from them in the second half of an 89-76 loss on Friday night. The Mercury are now on a three-game losing streak with four more games remaining on their road trip.

Before the game, the Mercury announced the return of their first-choice starting lineup, but at the opening tip-off, Kathryn Westbeld had been replaced by Natasha Mack. Westbeld did not appear in the game. Underdog WNBA reports that it was due to an illness.

Kahleah Copper opened the scoring with a three from the wing and Monique Akoa Makani, now back in the lineup without a minutes restriction, knocked down her first attempt from deep as the Mercury opened up an 8-0 lead. The defense looked superb in the early going, never allowing the Liberty to get comfortable, and Alyssa Thomas was running the show.

After a physical drive to the rim from Thomas raised Phoenix's advantage to 16-6, the Liberty began to chip away at it by getting to the free throw line. They took eight free throw attempts before the Mercury had a single one, but back-to-back Thomas and-ones after offensive rebounds gave the Mercs their first free throw attempts of the night and a 24-14 lead.

Jonquel Jones started to take control at the end of the fourth and she was a force in the middle. Phoenix would take just a four-point lead into the second quarter.

Phoenix opened the second with a full-court press and a DeWanna Bonner corner three and assist to Thomas for a midrange jumper pushed Phoenix's lead to a game-high 12 points. The Liberty regrouped and struck back with a commanding 15-3 run, punctuated by a Natasha Cloud layup that tied it up at 42 apiece.

With Satou Sabally in early foul trouble, the Mercury struggled to score without her and Copper on the floor. A post-up bucket and a trip to the free throw line for Thomas helped steady the ship, and regain the lead, but Sabrina Ionescu free throws with just .9 seconds on the clock (after a foul in the backcourt) tied the game up at 46-46 heading into the halftime break.

Thomas led Phoenix with 15 points, seven boards, and five assists in the first half, while Copper had 10 points on just five shot attempts. Bonner chipped in nine on five attempts. Ionescu and Jones led the Liberty with 12 and 11, respectively, and Cloud had eight.

The Mercury opened the third quarter with back-to-back pull-up jumpers from Akoa Makani, before hse forced a Ionescu airball and a shot clock violation. Things were looking up after a tough layup in traffic from Copper but the Liberty ratcheted up their defense and the Mercury were starved of scoring chances for the rest of the quarter.

The Liberty broke the game open with a 16-5 run and an absurd bank shot from Jones beat the third quarter buzzer, putting New York up by eight going into the final stanza. The Mercury managed just 13 points in the third.

The game got away from Phoenix in the fourt. The offense felt rushed and a couple of early bad shots followed by a travel from Sabally dug them hole. The Liberty's lead cracked double-digits on an and-one from Jones and they never looked back. Ionescu was fired up after hitting a tough bucket off the glass while being fouled and struck again to push the lead to 15.

The Mercury's defense was springing leaks and the offense couldn't get going. A quick mini-run late took the deficit down from 18 to 12 but they never threatened to come all the way back. Curiously, four starters (and Sami Whitcomb) were still on the court when the team was down 13 with less than a minute on the clock, perhaps an attempt to build some positive momentum heading into their next game on Sunday. The Liberty won, 89-76, their first win over Phoenix in three tries this season.

The Mercury hit just seven of their 30 three-point attempts on the night and went just 7-for-13 from the free throw line. The Liberty were nearly perfect from the charity stripe, going 21-for-22.

Thomas led all Mercury players in scoring with 20, along with 13 boards and eight assists. Copper, the only other Mercury player in double figures, had 14. Sabally had perhaps her roughest outing of the season, with six points on 3-for-13 shooting. She and Copper appeared to still be on a minutes restriction, logging just over 20 each.

Copper, Mack, and Akoa Makani all had positive plus/minuses, one of the few positive takeaways from a difficult loss.

Ionescu scored 29 for the Liberty and Jones put up a 20-point, 11-rebound double-double.

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