Kahleah Copper drops 25 as Mercury hand Sky 8th consecutive defeat

Kahleah Copper scored 25 points and Alyssa Thomas recorded a triple-double to lead the Phoenix Mercury to an 83-67 win over the Chicago Sky on Sunday night, handing Chicago its eighth consecutive loss.

Thomas finished with 10 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists, marking her second triple-double with Phoenix and the 13th of her regular-season career. Sami Whitcomb added 11 points for the Mercury (17-11), who snapped a two-game losing streak after dropping five of their last six.



Phoenix dominated the middle quarters, outscoring Chicago 56-32 and posting a huge 30-3 edge in fastbreak points. All-Star Satou Sabally missed the game for personal reasons.

The Sky (7-21) were again without standout rookie Angel Reese, who has now missed four of the last five games with a back injury. Elizabeth Williams led Chicago with 13 points and 15 rebounds, while Michaela Onyenwere also had 13 points. Kamilla Cardoso contributed 12 points and 10 rebounds. The Mercury outrebounded the Sky 45-40 and held a 46-34 advantage in points in the paint.


Phoenix started slowly, hitting just 5 of 25 shots in the first quarter as Chicago took a 19-13 lead. But the Mercury shot 12 of 15 in the second quarter to surge ahead 42-34 by halftime.

Copper scored 10 points in the period, while Phoenix grabbed 10 offensive boards and racked up 17 fastbreak points. The lead swelled to 24 in the third as Phoenix shot 10 of 16 from the field.

The game also featured sisters Maddy and Kathryn Westbeld facing off. Maddy had nine points in 22 minutes for Chicago, while Kathryn went scoreless in six minutes for Phoenix.