In a meeting between the last two teams in the Western Conference standings, rookie Valeriane Ayayi posted career highs of 18 points and 11 rebounds off the bench to help lead the Phoenix Mercury to a 93-73 victory over the visiting Seattle Storm.
Kahleah Copper added 17 points and Noemie Brochant posted a 16-point, 10-assist double-double for the Mercury (5-12), who snapped a four-game losing streak. Lexi Held had 11 points, while DeWanna Bonner chipped in 10. Natasha Mack finished with 10 points and 10 boards.
Natisha Hiedeman led Seattle (3-14) with 20 points, followed by Flau’jae Johnson’s 13. Zia Cooke and Dominique Malonga had 10 apiece for the Storm, who dropped their 10th straight game. Awa Fam had a team-high 10 rebounds in the loss.
After holding a seven-point halftime advantage, Phoenix opened the third quarter with 14 straight points, taking a commanding 62-41 lead on Copper’s layup at the 7:08 mark.
Johnson’s layup more than four minutes into the half accounted for Seattle’s first points after halftime.
After Copper’s triple extended the lead to 70-48, Cooke’s layup jumpstarted a 7-0 Seattle run to pull the visitors within 15.
Phoenix led 81-61 after three quarters before the teams scored 12 points apiece in the fourth.
Neither team took a lead larger than three until Stefanie Dolson’s 3-pointer put Seattle ahead 20-14 with 2:39 left in the opening quarter.
Katie Lou Samuelson’s layup closed the quarter’s scoring, giving the Storm a 24-19 lead after 10 minutes.
The Mercury began the second quarter on an 8-0 run, taking a three-point lead on Bonner’s three-point play.
The margin ballooned to 14 as Brochant, Bonner and Ayayi hit consecutive triples as part of a 13-0 Phoenix spurt.
Seattle pulled within six on Johnson’s layup with 19.6 seconds remaining in the half. Phoenix, led by Brochant’s 10 first-half points, held a 48-41 halftime lead. Hiedeman’s 11 points paced the Storm in the first half.
–Field Level Media
