Mercury lineup shows gaps vs. bigger Wings team

Right from the start, the Phoenix Mercury were unable to keep up with the Dallas Wings, playing behind the entirety of Saturday’s game.

Even with a dominant third quarter, the Mercury were unable to use that momentum into the fourth quarter and fell 107-92 at Footprint Center to snap the three-game win streak.

The Mercury couldn’t stop guard Arike Ogunbowale from dominating the court after she scored 40 points on 11-of-24 shooting. Ogunbowale led all shooters with seven 3-pointers.

Mercury wing Kahleah Copper led the comeback effort in the third quarter that put the Mercury within four points. She surpassed a career total of 3,000 points and finished with 32 points on the night.

The Mercury (3-2) will spend the next three games on the road, starting with the undefeated Connecticut Sun on Tuesday, the New York Liberty on Wednesday, and the Minnesota Lynx on Friday.

Smaller lineup showing gaps

The Mercury have fared well without center Brittney Griner, who remains out indefinitely with a foot injury. The smaller lineup plays a gritty game.

But with center Natasha Mack playing after an illness, the rotations were short for the forwards stacking up against the Wings’ taller lineup with 6’7” centers Teaira McCowan and Kalani Brown. As a result, the Mercury gave up 52 points in the paint and were outrebounded 38-25.

“They’re big. This is one of those games where we got dominated inside,” head coach Nate Tibbetts said. “Give them credit, that’s their strength. They took full advantage tonight.”

Perimeter game looks good so far

The Mercury couldn’t keep up with the Wings in many areas, but kept up in 3-point shooting. The Mercury made 14 3s on 35 attempts, outpacing the Wings’ 10 3s on 20 attempts.

Diana Taurasi had another big game, knocking down six 3-pointers and scoring 28 points. Copper added four 3-pointers on seven attempts, including one in the final seconds of the third quarter to make it six-point game.

The Mercury have the best perimeter shooting in the league, averaging 12.2 3-pointers per game.

Rebecca Allen goes down in third quarter

The Mercury’s bench had to play more minutes after forward Becca Allen went down at 6:58. Allen collided with a screen set up by McCowan and immediately dropped to the floor. Allen was on the floor for several minutes before trainers took her off. She did not return to the game after sustaining a head injury.

The play warranted an official review for a hostile act, but it was quickly ruled out. After Allen’s injury, the Mercury quickly went on an 8-3 run to trail 67-51. Led by Copper and Taurasi, the Mercury had their only quarter where they outscored the Wings, shooting 11-for-19 and recording 34 points.

"We pressed a little bit more, we sped them up and got them off kilter," Taurasi said. "On the other end, we had some really good looks and played with a little bit more aggression. We got to get to that a little bit quicker, but it was a huge sign for us going forward."

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Big third quarter not enough to get Mercury past Dallas Wings