The Phoenix Mercury finished a four-game road trip on Saturday with a 4-0 record as they made history by setting a franchise record with three-pointers made in a single game with 17 in their blowout win over the Chicago Sky, 107-86.
Center Kalani Brown made the team’s 17th three-pointer, the second of her career, before the game was finished.
Mercury set franchise record in three-pointers made in a single game with 17
In the first half, the Phoenix Mercury made 12 three-pointers against the Chicago Sky, who have the league’s worst defense at the three-point line. Not only that, but their contributions on both offense and defense also set the tone for the victory.
Lil’ step back from Kat. pic.twitter.com/TgDBpjtB1O
— Phoenix Mercury (@PhoenixMercury) June 21, 2025
The Mercury have an 11-4 record and a winning streak of five straight games for the first time since 2021. The last time Phoenix had a better record through 15 games was when they won the championship in 2014, when they had a 12-3 record.
“Shout out to the front office,” Phoenix Mercury guard Kahleah Copper said postgame. “They did an incredible job in building this team and understanding the vision Nate (Tibbetts) has for us. So just a shout out to my teammates for hitting shots, hitting open shots, hitting contested shots, our post players stepping up. (Kalani Brown) got a big one. Just a credit to the work that we put in every single day, and then just trusting the process and the vision and what the Phoenix Mercury wants to be.”
In the third quarter, the Mercury began with an 18-0 run with Kathryn Westbeld, Copper, and Monique Akoa Makani making three straight three-pointers. Phoenix’s defense also held the Chicago Sky to just 15 points as well.
The Mercury had six players—Copper, Kitjia Laksa, Akoa Makani, Satou Sabally, Westbeld, and Whitcomb—who each made more than two three-pointers in a single game, becoming only the second team, alongside the New York Liberty, to achieve this feat throughout the season. This marks the second time Phoenix has accomplished this, with their previous instance occurring in 2018.
The Mercury had six players—Copper, Kitjia Laksa, Akoa Makani, Satou Sabally, Westbeld, and Whitcomb— to make more than two three-pointers in a single game and joined the New York Liberty as the only teams to achieve this feat
Since Tibbetts took over as head coach in 2024, the Mercury has achieved six games with over 15 three-pointers each, surpassing the total from the previous 27 years combined. Also, Phoenix is leading the league in total three-pointers made throughout the regular season with 149.
“I think we’ve not shot it as good as we’re gonna shoot it,” Tibbetts said. “I think adding Kahleah (Copper) is gonna add another element to just our attack. (Sami Whitcomb) has been shooting extremely well. But it was just a credit to our group. There’s gonna be nights when you get 35 to 40 of them up and you make almost half of them. And so it starts with (Alyssa Thomas) in her force that she plays with going downhill, and her knowing that we’ve got shooters around her.”
Guard Sami Whitcomb made a noticeable impact off the bench, scoring 17 points and five three-pointers, all of which she made in the second quarter. She also surpassed Kara Lawson for the most games in WNBA history with four or more three-pointers made off the bench, with the 16th game of her career.
“We want to shoot 3s,” Whitcomb said. “We want to shoot the most 3s in the league, that’s been our MO. Defense, threes at the rim, and the coaches and the organization put together a team that’s got phenomenal shooting, and then people that can get downhill and find those players.”
“So it’s great when they’re rolling. And it’s great when we can play defense well enough to get those stops and run, because that’s how we’re going to generate those 3s. And I thought, that’s what it was today. I thought we played great defense. So we were able to get out and run and generate some great shots.”
How the Phoenix Mercury Stack Up Against the Top Two Teams in the WNBA
From training camp to the regular season, the Mercury focused on improving their defense, developing a “position-Less basketball” approach, and pacing. In the offseason, Phoenix brought in forward Thomas, Sabally and players with overseas experience with the goal of contending for a championship.
So far, Thomas’ leadership on both ends of the court has been noticeable on both ends of the court and is leading the league in assists per game with 8.9.
“We have a lot of fantastic shooters,” Whitcomb said. “Some as specialists, but even players that you maybe might not think of as three point shooters, like Kalani (Brown), she’s a super capable three point shooter. Everywhere we have that in our spacing and the players that we have, like (Alyssa Thomas, Satou Sabally and Kahleah Copper) that can get downhill and are such willing passers, just makes it really easy for all of us.”
With Copper’s return, Phoenix Mercury are currently sitting third in the standings. If they can maintain their health, the team is in a great position for a deep playoff run.
Tibbetts believes that the Mercury could be a dark horse championship contender with the players they brought in the offseason and how general manager Nick U’Ren revamped its roster in Phoenix.
Phoenix Mercury wing Kahleah Copper compared the joy on this Mercury team to the title-winning Chicago Sky team she was a part of in 2021.
“That was probably one of the other times in my career that I was having so much joy and winning.”#WNBA pic.twitter.com/vzzlR4Y0zn
— Desert Wave Media (@DesertWaveCo) June 21, 2025
Copper also shared that the last time she remembered the team having a lot of joy, like this year’s Phoenix Mercury team, was when she won the championship with the Chicago Sky in 2021. She was also named the Finals MVP with her explosive performance throughout the series.
“Our vision is to be right there with them at the end of the season,” Tibbetts said after the win over the Connecticut Sun Wednesday. “That’s our goal. And we’re not there yet. I mean, I think those top two teams and other teams are gonna keep getting better as the year goes on. But I can tell you that we’re not afraid of anyone. I know that from our group, right and at. And you know they they wanna they wanna step to whatever’s in front of them.”
The Phoenix Mercury will have five days to recover and practice for a two-game home stand, starting with the New York Liberty on Friday.
