Overview

• Phoenix won the decisive Game 3 of the first round 79–73, eliminating the defending champion New York Liberty.
• Satou Sabally paced the Mercury with 23 points, 12 rebounds and 3 assists in the clincher.
• Alyssa Thomas finished with 20 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists for the first playoff triple-double in Mercury history.
• Nyara Sabally, recently back from injury, did not play in the series, and New York's Leonie Fiebich posted three points, three rebounds and one assist.
• Phoenix advances to face the regular-season leader Minnesota Lynx in a best-of-five semifinal that opens Sunday in Minneapolis (23:00 MESZ).