Ciezki has 22 points in the Mercury's 94-91 victory over the Fire
Shay Ciezki had 22 points off the bench and the Phoenix Mercury rallied in the fourth quarter for a 94-91 victory over the Portland Fire on Thursday night in the teams' first game back from the FIBA World Cup break. Emily Engstler had 21 points and five 3-pointers for the expansion Fire, who have lost five of their last six. Holly Winterburn added 18 points.
Shay Ciezki delivered a powerful bench performance, scoring 22 points, as the Phoenix Mercury defeated the Portland Fire 94-91 in their first game back from the FIBA World Cup break. The expansion Fire managed 21 points from Emily Engstler, who also contributed five three-pointers. Holly Winterburn contributed 18 points to the Fire's effort. Both teams have been eliminated from playoff contention.
The Fire were without key players Carla Leite and Megan DiLeo, while the Mercury were missing Kahleah Cooper, Valeriane Ayayi, and Kyara Linskens. The Mercury pulled ahead in the fourth quarter, leading 82-79 after Alyssa Thomas made two free throws with 4:58 remaining. Sami Whitcomb's pullup jumper further extended the Mercury's lead.
With the Fire trailing 90-88, Karlie Samuelson missed a three-pointer with 21.4 seconds left, and Natasha Mack's free throws narrowed the gap to 92-91. Winterburn's three-pointer with 4.3 seconds remaining sealed the victory for the Mercury. Up next, the Mercury will play in Dallas on Saturday, while the Fire will face Golden State on Friday.
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- Ciezki has 22 points in the Mercury’s 94-91 victory over the Fire winnipegfreepress.com
