BRADENTON, Fla. (AP) - Diana Taurasi scored 26 of her 32 points in the first half to help the Phoenix Mercury beat the Las Vegas Aces 92-85 on Tuesday night.
Taurasi highlighted the first half with six 3-pointers, hitting several from well beyond the line, and her free-throw line jumper beat the halftime buzzer for a 52-45 lead. Taurasi finished 10 of 22 from the field, including 7 of 15 from distance, with seven assists.
Skylar Diggins-Smith added 20 points and seven assists for Phoenix (10-7). Shatori Walker-Kimbrough scored 15 points off the bench and Brianna Turner grabbed 13 rebounds. The Mercury were without two key players as Bria Hartley will miss the remainder of the season with a torn ACL and Brittney Griner left the WNBA bubble for personal reasons.
Jackie Young had 20 points and seven rebounds for Las Vegas (12-4). Dearica Hamby had 18 points and 13 rebounds, and A’ja Wilson added 17 points and 10 rebounds.
DREAM 102, FEVER 90
Courtney Williams and rookie Chennedy Carter each scored 22 points and the Dream beat the Fever..
Williams also had six rebounds and four assists, and Carter added six assists. Carter has combined for 48 points in her last two games since returning from an injury.
Betnijah Laney chipped in with 16 points for Atlanta (4-13). Glory Johnson had 13 points and eight rebounds, and Elizabeth Williams scored 10 points. The Dream have won two of their last four games following a 10-game losing streak.
Atlanta shot 53.6% from the field, including 10 of 20 from 3-point range, and made 18 of 22 free throws. Johnson made three 3-pointers and Carter was 8 of 10 at the stripe.
Kelsey Mitchell and Teaira McCowan each scored 20 points for Indiana (5-12), which has lost five straight games.
SUN 70, LIBERTY 65
DeWanna Bonner had 27 points and 11 rebounds to help the Sun beat the Liberty.
Bonner made a baseline jumper on a broken play to give Connecticut a 67-61 lead with 16.7 seconds left. She was 7 of 23 from the field and made 12 of 13 free throws to reach 20 points for the second straight game.
Alyssa Thomas added 15 points, six rebounds, four assists and five steals for Connecticut (8-9), which has won five of its last seven games. Jasmine Thomas, averaging 11.5 points and 4.2 assists, did not play due to plantar fasciitis.
Both teams shot below 35% from the field, and the Liberty turned it over 18 times.
Kia Nurse, coming off the bench for the first time this season, scored 18 points for New York (2-14).
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