Phoenix And New York Prepared To Battle

Fast forward to the present, and these teams are still competing. They met in last year's playoffs, and the Mercury beat the Liberty 2-1 although they lost the first game. New York picked up an overtime win over Phoenix, but they Mercury quickly recovered. They won the next two games, and they took on another tough rival in the next round.

Phoenix and New York will face each other three times during the 2026 season, and the first two meetings are early in the season. The Liberty will host the Mercury in those games, as Phoenix will be on a brief road trip.

Winning on the road is a challenge, but if the Mercury win at least one of these games, they can take the series.

These teams will meet one more time, but it will be later in the season. The Mercury will be home for that game, and they have a shot at getting the sweep or winning the series 2-1.

The Mercury won last year's series, as they beat the Liberty 3-1. They beat the Liberty in New York in the first game, and Monique Akoa Makani led them to victory.

Akoa Makani comes to play, helps team get road win

Akoa Makani had a career-high 21 points, and she also had six assists and a rebound. The Mercury also had contributions from other players, as Alyssa Thomas had 18 points, 15 rebounds, seven assists and two steals. Sami Whitcomb had 16 points, Satou Sabally had 15 and Kitija Laksa had 13.

Phoenix won the second game, and New York came away with a win in the third. Then, the Mercury won the last meeting to get the 3-1 win.

The Mercury and the Liberty are contenders, and this series is a chance for either team to prove it. They can get some momentum, and come playoff time, these teams may encounter each other once again.

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