Phoenix Mercury forward DeWanna Bonner (No. 24) celebrates after making a three-pointer against the Minnesota Lynx on Tuesday. (Photo: Phoenix Mercury)
PHOENIX — After playing their third game in four days, the Phoenix Mercury lost their second straight game to the Minnesota Lynx, looking exhausted.
The Mercury led by as much as eight points in the second quarter but were outscored 47-39 in the second half to lose to the Lynx in front of their sellout crowd, 88-84.
What Went Wrong for the Phoenix Mercury
In the loss, Phoenix not only lost the rebounding battle to Minnesota (43-31) but was also outscored in points in the paint (42-32).
At the start of the game, the Mercury looked dominant on the offensive end, making seven three-pointers in the first half. Following halftime, Minnesota’s defense limited Phoenix to just two three-pointers made in the second half.
“We got some good looks at the basket, especially the end,” said Mercury forward DeWanna Bonner, who recorded 16 points and seven rebounds, on their execution in the fourth quarter postgame. “Just gotta go back to the drawing board. Our offense is a little choppy, and we let that affect our defense, and that’s what you can’t do, no matter what. You have to rely on your defense, and that’s what we usually do to play defense. We weren’t connected tonight.
“Go back to the drawing board for that first, and then we keep adding more and more people in our lineups. Of course, the offense is a little bit all over the place. You got people playing a little bit out of position and then just trying to figure it out, but you can always play hard on defense.”
Kahleah Copper with a 30-piece in the Phoenix Mercury’s Loss
Phoenix Mercury guard Kahleah Copper (No. 2) celebrates after making a basket on Tuesday. (Photo: Phoenix Mercury)
After being limited to just 11 points in Sunday’s game against the Golden State Valkyries, guard Kahleah Copper put on a show for the Mercury, leading the team in scoring 30 points. She scored 17 of her 30 points in the second half, putting Phoenix in position to win the game and looking like her dominant self on the offense.
When asked about Copper’s performance while integrating new players in Phoenix, she emphasized the importance of trusting the process and remaining patient.
“Just knowing that it’s gonna be a process that you gotta trust,” Copper said. “We are still learning (about) each other. You still learn to play. Some of us only had three practices. It’s just been tough, but we’re gonna figure it out. There’s nothing more to say to it, like we’re gonna figure it out.”
Since the Mercury began the season with playing three games in four nights, the team missed the impact of guards Monique Akoa Makani and Sami Whitcomb.
Makani brought in success as a rookie starting point guard, bringing in the defensive intensity and her basketball IQ in Phoenix’s unexpected run to the WNBA Finals last season. Additionally, Whitcomb’s energy off the bench was also notably missed as she brought in the three-point shooting, but she is making progress on rehab and is on the second week of her four to six week timetable return.
How the Phoenix Mercury is Adding New Players from Overseas
With Akoa Makani (overseas commitment) and Whitcomb (left knee injury) unavailable, head coach Nate Tibbetts and his staff are actively working to integrate new players into the system.
Makani and the Tango Bourges Basket will face Basket Landes in Game 2 of the French Women’s Basketball League (also known as Ligue Féminine de Basketball), as they look to win the title on Friday.
“This is the first time that we’ve come out of camp and not had everyone, so I wish we were there,” Tibbetts said. “I don’t think we’re there. I didn’t get that feeling tonight. It might take us a little bit longer just to kind of figure out who we are, just because we have had quite a bit of change here in the last week.
“Obviously, we played a good game in Vegas, and after our last two kind of disappointed. You want to protect home court, especially on opening night. And we’re going to need to be better than we were tonight,”
In the first two games, Serbian guard Jovana Nogic filled in as a starter for the Mercury, looking comfortable in Tibbetts’ system with her three-point shooting.
Nogic, who is a two-time Serbian National Player of the Year, made her debut on Saturday, and broke the WNBA record for most points scored in a first half with 19 points.
“We’ll continue to look at different lineups with Monique (Akoa Makani) here and Sami (Whitcomb) out again,” Tibbetts said.
“In the first two games, we started Yo-yo (Jovana Nogic), and going into that weekend, I had planned to start (Valeriane Ayayi). Overall, our execution and getting to spots, we’re not where we need to be, and we need to do some more practice and reps together.”
Valeriane Ayayi Makes Her Phoenix Mercury Debut
Phoenix Mercury forward Valeriane Ayayi (No. 11) was introduced at the home opener before the game against the Minnesota Lynx. (Photo: Phoenix Mercury)
Forward Valeriane Ayayi played her first WNBA game since the 2015 season, when she played for the San Antonio Stars (now the Las Vegas Aces).
Additionally, she started for the Mercury, recording six points, two three-pointers made, four rebounds and three assists while playing 17 minutes of action.
Throughout her professional career overseas, Ayayi led USK Praha to a Euroleague Women’s championship in 2025 and is a two-time Olympian for the French Women’s National team.
“She’s just a good playmaker first of all,” Bonner said. “I mean, she’s a big body as well, but this is her first game. This is her first time playing with us, because she didn’t travel with us for those first two games, so she kind of got thrown in the fire tonight. But she’ll get better and better at learning, reading, and everything she hadn’t had to play the W in a while.
“I’m pretty sure this was, like, a little bit of a shocker, but she does a great job. She learns fast. She’s a vet, so she’ll come in and do some things, but that’s another, what, six, four guard that we’ll have. I can’t wait for her to, like, finally feel comfortable.
“Her composure,” Copper said when asked about playing alongside Ayayi. “She’s just been very composed, just bringing that another one to the locker room. As she continues to grow (and) to get comfortable, you’ll just see her continue to flourish.”
The Mercury will have two days to prepare for Friday’s home game against the visiting Chicago Sky to continue the four-game homestand while looking to trust the process and clean up mistakes on the defensive end.
Mercury Game Notes: The Mercury shot a percentage of 36.1 (26-of-72) from the field compared to the Lynx’s 50 percent (32-of-64) from the field. Phoenix also recorded 11 steals for the second time this season, as they did so 10 times in 2025 and forced 15 of Minnesota’s turnovers, leading to 21 points scored.
