The No. 5 Liberty defeated the No. 4 Mercury 76-69 in overtime on Sunday at PHX Arena to take a 1-0 lead in the series and steal homecourt advantage

Satou Sabally and Alyssa Thomas each scored 15 points to help the Phoenix Mercury beat the New York Liberty 86-60 in Game 2 on Wednesday night, evening the best-of-three playoff series. The decisive Game 3 will be Friday night in Phoenix.

The Phoenix Mercury beat the New York Liberty 3-1 in their season series, and their rookie, Monique Akoa Makani contributed.

The New York Liberty could not come close to producing enough offense in a critical third-quarter stretch on Wednesday because the Phoenix Mercury turned up the defensive intensity in an 86-60 Game 2 road victory.

Breanna Stewart had said Wednesday morning that avoiding a trip to Phoenix for Game 3 was a “main priority” for the New York Liberty. But that’s where they will head to try to stave off a disastrous first-round playoff exit that would dash their championship repeat hopes.

After much speculation about her condition, Breanna Stewart was on the court Wednesday night for the Liberty’s lopsided 86-60 loss to the Phoenix Mercury in Game 2 of their first round series

The Golden State Valkyries have completed a number of firsts in their inaugural season. Getting their first playoff win wasn't one of them.