The Phoenix Mercury and Atlanta Dream meet Tuesday in WNBA action at the IMG Academy.
The Phoenix Mercury look for another victory to get a game above a .500 record. The Phoenix Mercury are averaging 93.5 points on 50 percent shooting and allowing 91.8 points on 44.1 percent shooting. Bria Hartley is averaging 17.3 points and 4.3 rebounds while Brittney Griner is averaging 16.3 points and 7.3 rebounds. Skylar Diggins-Smith is the third double-digit scorer and Diana Taurasi is dishing five assists. The Phoenix Mercury are shooting 38.2 percent from beyond the arc and 73.6 percent from the free throw line. The Phoenix Mercury are allowing 33.7 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 34.5 rebounds per game.
The Atlanta Dream look for a statement victory to get a game above a .500 record. The Atlanta Dream are averaging 84 points on 44.6 percent shooting and allowing 91.5 points on 46.9 percent shooting. Betnijah Laney is averaging 19 points and 4.7 rebounds while Elizabeth Williams is averaging 16 points and 1.3 assists. Chennedy Carter is the third double-digit scorer and Monique Billings is grabbing 11.7 rebounds. The Atlanta Dream are shooting 28.8 percent from beyond the arc and 81.6 percent from the free throw line. The Atlanta Dream are allowing 39.5 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 32 rebounds per game.
Will update with trends once they’re released.
The Phoenix Mercury are the better team here and should get the job done, but they’ve been in some dogfights this season and have been rough defensively for the most part. The Atlanta Dream have some offensive depth to them and should be eager for a bounce back performance after getting smacked in their last time out against the Indiana Fever. The Phoenix Mercury have allowed a lot of teams to hang around this season because of a suspect defense and they’re going to have a hard time covering decent sized numbers if that continues.
The Atlanta Dream probably won’t win this game, but they have just enough scoring firepower to hang around and keep it within the number. Give me the points.