Guru’s WNBA Report - Part 2: Temple Grad Peddy’s Dagger at Finish Gives Phoenix Comeback Win Over Washington

Guru’s note: I posted my story on the connecticut win earlier but it’s just below this one.

 

By Rob Knox @knoxrob1

 

 Shey Peddy started the season with the Washington Mystics.

 

 The Temple University product made sure the Phoenix Mercury’s season continued while simultaneously ending the reign of the defending champion Washington Mystics with a shot to remember.

 

Peddy, who’s short WNBA career exploits at an older age is one for the books, swished a corner 3-pointer as time expired to give the fifth-seeded Mercury a thrilling 85-84 victory over the eighth-seeded Mystics in a WNBA single-elimination first round game at the IMG Academy Tuesday night in Bradenton, Fla., near Tampa/St. Petersburg.

 

 Phoenix advances to play No. 4 seed Minnesota on Thursday in the second round at 7 p.m. No. 7 Connecticut, which beat No. 6 Chicago in the opening game, meets No. 3 Los Angeles at 9 p.m. Both games will be televised on ESPN2.

 

With time winding down, Phoenix guard Skylar Diggins-Smith threw a crosscourt pass to Peddy, who used a pump fake to get her defender airborne and then calmly released the ball, which hit all net.

 

“It’s an indescribable feeling,” Peddy said afterwards. “To see how excited my teammates and coaches were. It’s the best I’ve felt probably ever.

 

“For me to hit that shot against them is a fairy tale moment. I don’t think you could write it up any better than that.”

 

She paid homage to Washington coach Mike Thibault.

 

“I wouldn’t even be here in the bubble if it wasn’t for him.”

 

 Cut by Washington midway through the 2020 season, Peddy’s basket was the perfect punctuation to her 12-point, four rebound and three steal night. The stunning shot will go down as one of the shining moments in WNBA history.

 

 It was a perfect ending to an intense and hard-fought contest that featured plenty of late drama and lead changes.

 

Notre Dame grad Skylar Diggins-Smith, who came to Phoenix from Dallas this season, threw a perfect cross court pass in traffic, seeing Peddy open.

 

“I believe in Shey,” she said. “I see her putting up shots in the gym every day. We believe in one another on this team. There’s a reason why we’re here. I can’t explain this basketball we’re playing. It’s the craziest basketball I’ve ever been a part of in my life.

 

“I saw Leilani (Mitchell) coming at me full steam,” Peddy described her part in the game-ending play, which was her first ever game-winner.  “I was just praying I had enough time to pump fake it, because I knew if I shot it, she was going to block it. 

 

“Once I let it go, I was hoping it went in. It felt good. It was a little high so I was unsure.” 

 

The Mystics had put themselves in a great position to advance by scoring six consecutive points and forcing three straight Mercury turnovers in the final 75 seconds. 

 

That effort helped Washington reverse an 82-78 deficit into an 84-82 edge with 5.8 seconds remaining.

 

Emma Meesseman's steal and fast-break layup capped a 5-0 run to give Washington an 83-82 lead with 38.8 seconds left. Myisha Hines-Allen drew a charge on Diggins-Smith on the Mercury’s next possession and Mitchell split a pair of free throws to set the stage for the memorable ending.

 

To put themselves in a position to continue their season, the Mystics had survived a 17-0 Mercury fourth quarter burst along with an scoring explosion from the legendary duo of Diana Taurasi and Diggins-Smith, who combined to score 28 points after intermission.

 

 Mitchell was awesome in leading the Mystics with 25 points on 8-of-15 shooting. She made 5-of-7 from 3-point distance. 

 

Emma Meesseman, last season’s WNBA Finals MVP, added 18 points for the Mystics, who were outscored, 26-14, in the fourth quarter.

 

Also scoring in double figures for Washington was Ariel Atkins (13 points) and Myisha Hines-Allen (11 points, nine rebounds). 

 

Washington, which was looking to advance to the WNBA Finals for the third straight season, overcame early foul trouble to their leading scorer, Hines-Allen, in the first half to take control and lead 46-35 at intermission.

 

 The Mystics carefully constructed a 12-point lead 55 seconds into the final period before Phoenix got rolling. The Mercury have been used to dealing with adversity this season so that deficit was nothing.

 

 Despite 54 games missed due to injury or absence this season, and missing two of its top four scorers, the Mercury closed the season winning seven of its final nine games. 

 

 Of course, it was the Mercury’s legendary duo of Taurasi and Diggins-Smith that got them back on track in this one. Amazingly, Taurasi is 7-0 in single-elimination playoff games since the WNBA adopted this playoff format in 2016 and 14-1 overall.

 

 Taurasi scored 13 of her 23 points in the third quarter. Diggins-Smith shrugged off a rough shooting start to tally 10 of her playoff career-high 24 points in the final quarter. During the Mercury’s 17-0 blitz, Diggins-Smith and former Rutgers star Kia Vaughn combined to score 14 points.

 

“This was one of a kind,” Taurasi said. “So many momentum swings.”

 

 However, it was Peddy who had the final answer.

 

While she keeps playing, her former team exits the wobble after a fantastic stretch run which saw them win five of their final six games, including four straights that included upsets of Minnesota and Los Angeles and a back-to-back last weekend over New York and Atlanta to clinch the final playoff spot. 

 

For much of the contest, it appeared as if the Mystics would extend their season until Phoenix finally got hot in the fourth quarter after a productive third quarter failed to slice the halftime deficit.

 

“That’s a really tough way to end the season,” Thibault said. “Give Shey credit for making the shot. We didn’t play a very good fourth quarter.

 

“Diana did what she does. Skylar made some big shots. Phoenix played a very good fourth quarter. It’s a tough way to end the season, one of the tougher losses since I’ve been here,” he continued. “Just because I feel so bad for these players and how hard they worked and they had a chance to win a huge game and advance.”

 

Of defending the last play, he said, “You have to prioritize. We knew they were going to put it in Taurasi‘s or Diggins’ hands and try to drive it. We did a great job cutting off and (Diggins) made a great pass, threading the needle to somebody across court with time running down.

 

“That could have been a play where they never got it off, either. We did what we needed to do defensively. And then Leilani came in to help, to make sure and it was a great pass by Skylar and even a greater shot by them.”

 

Considering the adversity the Mystics faced from way back as plans were being formalized for the summer, “its going to pay off in the long run. The experience these players got this summer, we’re going to be one of the favorites next year.

 

“I don’t know that anybody considered us a playoff team (this year), certainly a couple of weeks ago. We had players who got better. But we got a great roster. We’ll have to make some evaluations in free agency but overall we got better.

 

“You can’t put (Phoenix) on the line. And those two (Taurasi and Diggins), they’re great players.

 

As for Shey’s shot, “It wasn’t cool, because I don’t like to lose. I’d like to see her make that shot against anyone else, but not us.”