Mercury Defense Fuels First Playoff Series Win Since 2021

The Mercury defense was dominant throughout their first-round series win against the Liberty. Can they do it again against the Lynx?

Phoenix Mercury forward DeWanna Bonner (14) reacts after making a jumper shot against the New York Liberty late in the fourth quarter during Game Three of the 2025 WNBA Playoffs first round at PHX Arena on Sept. 14, 2025, in Phoenix. / Rob Schumacher/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

On Friday night, the Phoenix Mercury defeated the defending champion New York Liberty in a 79-73 thriller, winning their first round series two games to one.

It's the first time the Mercury have won a playoff series since 2021, when a Phoenix squad that went just 19 and 13 and finished fifth in the WNBA standings made a surprise run to the WNBA Finals, where they lost to Finals MVP Kahleah Copper and the Chicago Sky. (The 2021 team also beat the Liberty in the first round, back when it was a single game.)

Major Win

Fittingly, it was Copper who put the nail in the Liberty's coffin with an acrobatic and-one with under a minute remaining in the game.

Much of the attention will go to the offensive performances of the team's big three, as all three of them hit double figures by halftime, Satou Sabally had one of her best scoring nights of the season, and Alyssa Thomas racked up yet another triple-double, but the Mercury's defense was absolutely massive throughout the series.

The Liberty are absolutely loaded with offensive talent, so much so that they have a former Finals MVP coming off the bench, in addition to two more in the starting lineup, and their offense can be lethal when it gets going. The Mercury were aggressive on defense in al three games, and they held one of the league's offenses to 76 points and under in all three games, including just 60 points in game two in New York.

Sep 19, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Mercury forward Satou Sabally (0) and New York Liberty forward Leonie Fiebich (13) go after a loose ball during the second half of game three of round one for the 2025 WNBA Playoffs at PHX Arena. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images / Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

They held the Liberty to just 65 in regulation in Game 1 (before going on to lose 76-69 in overtime), just 60 in Game 2, when they absolutely throttled them, and 73 in Game 3 in Phoenix, when, despite a valiant effort from Breanna Stewart as she fought through injury and put up 30 points, they never let the Liberty get comfortable.

Phoenix sent constant ball pressure and traps at New York, using their speed and quickness to make up for the size disparity between the two teams.

The second-best three-point shooting team in the W knocked down just 23 of their 91 threes (25.3%) for the series, and the pressure even effected them when they got decent looks. They also forced the Liberty to turn the ball over 45 times over the three games, helping the Mercury get their transition offense going against a dialed in New York defense.

Their next task will be taking on the Minnesota Lynx, who have the best offense in the league and a superstar in Napheesa Collier who just posted one of the most efficient scoring seasons in league history. But if the Phoenix defense can keep this up, they have a chance.

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