Alyssa Thomas had 23 points and 10 assists, Satou Sabally scored 21 points and the host Phoenix Mercury advanced to the WNBA Finals with an 86-81 comeback victory over the game but crippled Minnesota Lynx in Game 4 of their semifinal series Sunday night.
DeWanna Bonner had 11 of her 13 points and all three of her 3-pointers in the fourth quarter, when the Mercury outscored the Lynx 31-13 to overcome a 68-55 deficit and advance to the finals for the first time since falling to the Chicago Sky in 2021.
The Lynx played without star center Napheesa Collier, who suffered a left ankle injury in the final seconds of the Mercury’s 84-76 victory in Game 3 on Friday and watched the game from the bench in a walking boot.
Minnesota’s Kayla McBride had 14 of her playoff career-high 31 points when the Lynx took the upper hand in the third quarter but could not hold on. Courtney Williams had 20 points and Jessica Shepard had career playoff-high 14 points while starting for Collier.
The finals are to begin Friday, with the first two games at the site of the higher seed. The fourth-seeded Mercury knocked off the top-seeded Lynx in their best-of-five series. The second-seeded Las Vegas Aces and the sixth-seeded Indiana Fever meet in Game 5 of their series Tuesday.
The WNBA finals will be a best-of-seven for the first time in league history. Phoenix last won a championship in 2014.
The Mercury scored 19 of the first 21 points in the fourth period, and the second of Bonner’s two three-pointers gave them a 72-70 lead with 3:39 remaining.
McBride and Bonner traded 3-pointers as the Mercury stayed ahead 77-73. McBride’s sixth three made it 77-76 with 1:04 remaining but Bonner followed with two free throws for a 79-76 lead with 42 seconds left.
After a McBride miss, Thomas made a driving layup for an 81-76 lead with 27 seconds left. The Lynx later got within three on Natasha Hiedeman’s thee-pointer with 5.2 seconds remaining before Kahleah Copper closed the scoring with two free throws.
Associate head coach Eric Thibault coached the Lynx while head coach Cheryl Reeve served a one-game suspension for her conduct and comments toward the officials during and after Game 3.
Thomas was two rebounds short of her second playoff triple-double.
The Mercury had outscored 21-9 in the fourth quarter of the Game 3.
The Mercury trailed by 14 in the first quarter, drew even at 38 at halftime and did not lead until Copper’s 3-pointer on their first possession of the second half.
The Lynx put together another spurt including two threes from McBride for 55-45 lead midway through the third.
Sabally had 24, 23 and 21 points in the final three games of the series, all Mercury wins.