Phoenix Mercury pull off late win over Washington Mystics

The Phoenix Mercury (3-1) overcame a rough shooting performance against the Washington Mystics (2-3) and pulled out a 68-62 win at PHX Arena on May 25.

Rookie guard Monique Akoa Makani led the Mercury with 13 points, and Satou Sabally followed with 12. Alyssa Thomas had 11 points, eight rebounds and five assists.

After dropping a loss in the fourth quarter in Seattle in the previous game, the Mercury's second half against the Mystics looked eerily similar as both games involved a late surge.

“That was our first game on the road and facing a little adversity down the stretch, we did not handle it well," head coach Nate Tibbetts said. "But here, playing in front of this crowd, it’s special and it’s not like this everywhere. They were a big reason and our players didn’t give up and our fans didn’t give up. When you do that, good things happen.” 

Washington Mystics forward Aaliyah Edwards (24) has the ball stripped away by Phoenix Mercury forward Kathryn Westbeld (24) and guard Sami Whitcomb (33) during the first quarter at PHX Arena May 25, 2025.

The Mercury had a handle on their turnovers in the first half and scored 12 points off the Mystics’ 18 turnovers.

Even with the Mystics committing 30 turnovers, the game was closer than it should've been as the Mystics outworked the Mercury throughout the second half.

"They turned up their physicality on us and we didn't handle it well," Tibbetts said.

The Mercury had two second-chance points the entire second half, while the Mystics crashed the boards and outrebounded the Mercury 41-26.  

Even though the Mystics shot better in the first half, the Mercury earned more opportunities and even outscored the Mystics 17-9 in the second quarter.

But shooting struggles took control of the Mercury, leading to 19 missed shots in the second half. Throughout the game, the Mercury couldn't finish looks and went 9 for 26 (34.6%) in the paint.

Eventually, the Mystics erased the 13-point deficit.

"I haven’t seen us miss that many layups before, in practice or anything," Tibbetts said. "But we didn’t hang our heads. I was so impressed with our defensive effort, and it was defense and belief. We just kept fighting and feeding off AT’s energy and toughness. When you have her out there, you always have a chance.” 

After Thomas’ layup with 4:20 left in the third, the Mercury didn’t make another shot the rest of the quarter. The Mercury led by two points at the end of the third, but the Mystics had all the momentum. 

Mystics forward Emily Engstler and guard Jade Melbourne hit back-to-back 3s for a 50-48 lead with 8:12 left in the fourth for the Mystics' first lead since 6:56 in the second.

Thomas eventually broke through for the Mercury's slumping offense with a much-needed layup with 6:45 left, and the Mercury's defense started to gain control of the game.

Two late 3-pointers from Kathryn Westbeld and Monique Akoa Makani regained the Mercury's lead. The defense also earned key stops and forced the Mystics to make free throws, solidifying the win.

"I missed a few before that, and you just got to keep telling yourself to shoot the ball, and you can't get in your head about missing those shots. It's all about the next shot," Westbeld said. "My teammates and everyone instilled confidence in me to keep shooting the ball, and AT found me on the wing again and I just let it fly."

The Mystics were led by rookies Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen, who scored 14 and 11 points respectively. Iriafen led all players with 13 rebounds.

The two rookies were difficult to maintain at times, but combined for 13 turnovers. Iriafen's physicality "did something to AT to wake her up," according to Tibbetts, which led to two turnovers from Iriafen in the fourth quarter.

However, Thomas jokingly played off Tibbetts' comment in the postgame conference.

"I'm always awake and ready to play," Thomas said.

Mercury star Kahleah Copper hasn't played in the 2025 season and is ruled out for four to six weeks after undergoing a successful left knee arthroscopy. Natasha Mack is week-to-week with a back injury and hasn't appeared this season. Murjanatu Musa is out with an illness and appeared on May 22 against the Los Angeles Sparks.

The Mercury will continue the homestand with the Chicago Sky at 7 p.m. Tuesday, May 27. 

X-Factor key notes

• The Mercury had 15 steals against the Mystics. That matches Phoenix's most in a game since they recorded that many at the Houston Comets on July 31, 2007, per Stathead.
• The Mercury's 29 forced turnovers from the Mystics are the most in a non-overtime game in franchise history. According to Elias Sports Bureau, this is just the third time in franchise history that a Mercury opponent has recorded 29-plus turnovers in any game. The first time this happened was when the New York Liberty recorded 30 in an overtime game on Aug. 11, 1998. The second time was the Mercury franchise-record 33 turnovers that they forced from the Utah Starzz (now the Las Vegas Aces) in an overtime game on Aug. 17, 1997.
• Mercury's starting wing Kathryn Westbeld shot 2-of-9 against the Mystics, both of her field goals made were from the arc. Westbeld joins Diana Taurasi as the only rookies in Mercury history to make more than one 3-pointer in each of her first four career games.