PHOENIX — There is no homecourt advantage in these WNBA Finals.
Each team can claim a victory in the other’s arena, and that should be some comfort to the Indiana Fever when it faces the Phoenix Mercury in tonight’s deciding Game 5.
In fact, Indiana has won two of three in Phoenix — once in the regular season, then again in Game 2.
The most important road victory, though, came when Phoenix got back in its fast-paced groove for a 90-77 victory Wednesday night in Indianapolis.
That sent the series back to Arizona, where Diana Taurasi, Cappie Pondexter, Penny Taylor and the rest of the Mercury can claim the franchise’s second title in three years.
“Our strength all year has been our confidence in our attack, and I felt like we got that back,” Taylor said after Wednesday’s win.
The teams have traded wins since the Mercury opened the series with a wild 120-116 overtime victory in the highest-scoring game in WNBA history.
In winning its fifth consecutive elimination game, Phoenix simplified its sometimes complex offense to what coach Corey Gaines said was “one play, over and over again.”
Tamika Catchings, who had 24 points and 12 rebounds in Game 4, said Indiana won’t go down without a fight, not after she waited eight years in the league to finally reach this moment.
“I mean, it’s an awesome feeling to think about winning a championship,” she said, “and it’s kinda like I don’t want to get too excited because I want to make sure it happens first.”
