PHOENIX (AP) — Brittney Griner scored 22 points, Diana Taurasi had 17 points and six assists, and the Phoenix Mercury beat the Indiana Fever 85-63 on Thursday night to snap a six-game losing streak.
It was the first win for interim coach Nikki Blue, who took over after Phoenix fired Vanessa Nygaard on Sunday. The Mercury only scored 62 points against Dallas on Tuesday in Blue’s debut.
Brianna Turner added a season-high 11 points for Phoenix (3-11). The Mercury had a season-high 28 assists on 34 made field goals. Sophie Cunningham (concussion evaluation) and Moriah Jefferson (ankle) did not play in the fourth quarter.
Breanna Stewart scored 24 points and Jonquel Jones added 14 points and 11 rebounds in her return to Connecticut as the New York Liberty beat the Sun 89-81.
Alyssa Thomas has kept the Connecticut Sun competitive with her all-around play. She will need to find a way to increase her productivity with Connecticut center Brionna Jones sidelined for the remainder of the season because of a ruptured Achilles’ tendon.
There was a time in Brittney Griner’s life when a mid-season coaching change might have been tough to handle.
Phoenix led 31-23 after its highest-scoring first quarter of the season, and it was 52-35 at the break behind Griner’s 15 points.
Taurasi made a 3-pointer on back-to-back possessions late in the third quarter to help the Mercury lead 72-51 entering the fourth.
Kelsey Mitchell scored 15 points for Indiana (5-10), which lost its third straight after back-to-back losses against Las Vegas. NaLyssa Smith had 10 points and nine rebounds, and rookie Aliyah Boston added six points and nine rebounds.
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