League-best Lynx open Commissioner's Cup with struggling Mercury

The downtrodden Phoenix Mercury have endured five straight setbacks and the schedule maker hasn't done them any favors with the Minnesota Lynx visiting town on Monday night.

Minnesota (6-2) owns the best record in the WNBA and has won four consecutive games entering this Commissioner's Cup opener. Meanwhile, the Mercury (2-7) have the 14th-best record in the 15-team league.

"No one is going to feel sorry for us," said Phoenix coach Nate Tibbetts. "No one drew up 2-7 but we've got to keep fighting. I believe in the group and we're going to keep fighting.

"I believe we'll be where we need to be when the playoffs come around -- and we're not there right now."

The Mercury are back home after an 0-3 road trip that consisted of an 82-80 loss to the Atlanta Dream and two defeats against the New York Liberty.

Phoenix lost 84-74 on Wednesday and 75-68 on Friday. The Liberty took control with a 23-0 run in the third quarter of the first game, then never trailed in the rematch.

The Mercury had shooting issues on Friday, making just 6 of 24 from 3-point range and shooting 33.9% overall. Kahleah Copper scored 16 points but was just 4-of-16 shooting.

Minnesota is 4-0 on the road this season after producing a 79-58 victory over the Chicago Sky on Friday.

It was the third time in the last five games that the Lynx played the Sky. Minnesota lost by seven and won by 10 in the other two matchups.

"When you see a team for the third time, you're well-versed in what they're doing," said Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve.

Nia Coffey scored a season-best 20 points and made a career-high six 3-pointers in Friday's victory. It marked just the second time the 10-year veteran reached the 20-point mark in her career. She scored 23 in a game in 2018.

Coffey also collected eight rebounds, two shy of her season high.

Coffey, 30, is in her first season with Minnesota. The Lynx are her fifth WNBA employer.

"We play well together. It's a good system for everyone, I believe," Coffey said of fitting in. "I just think we play really good team basketball, and it's really fun."

Minnesota notched an 88-84 road win on May 12 in Phoenix. Natasha Howard had 14 points and 11 rebounds and Coffey recorded 13 points and 10 rebounds. Copper scored a season-high 30 points for the Mercury.

The Commissioner's Cup is the WNBA's in-season tournament that runs June 1-17 with the title game slated for June 30. The players on the championship team will split $500,000 in prize money.

--Field Level Media