Griner Named Western Conference Player of the Week

2014 WNBA Champion and two-time Defensive Player of the Year Brittney Griner today was named the WNBA’s Western Conference Player of the Week, as announced by the league office.  It’s the fifth weekly award of Griner’s career and her second of the 2017 season.

Griner and Phoenix closed the regular season with three consecutive wins, including a 2-0 week, earning the fifth seed in the WNBA Playoffs and a Round 1 home game Wednesday at Wells Fargo Arena on the campus of Arizona State University.  Last week, Griner led the Mercury to wins over the East-best Connecticut Sun and the Atlanta Dream, averaging 30.5 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists, while shooting 62.5 percent (20-of-32) from the field and 87.5 percent (21-of-24) from the free-throw line.  She recorded consecutive 30-point games, her league-leading fifth and sixth of the year.

Coming off a 29-point, eight-rebound game in a pivotal August 27 win at Seattle, Griner finished with 31 points, eight rebounds and a season-high five assists in the Mercury’s 86-66 win over the Sun.  Griner was 10-of-15 from the field (66.7 percent) and 11-of-12 from the line (91.7 percent).

In the regular season finale on Sunday, Griner recorded her second-straight 30-point game, finishing with 30 points and six rebounds, shooting 58.8 percent (10-of-17) from the field and 83.3 percent (10-of-12) from the line.   Her most important stat on Sunday, though, was the $66,100 she helped to raise for her hometown, Houston, with the help of her teammates, the Mercury organization and the X-Factor.

Be Heard in the Playoffs! Diana Taurasi and the Phoenix Mercury are headed to their franchise-record fifth-straight WNBA Playoffs, as Taurasi attempts to lead the Mercury to a WNBA-record tying fourth championship.  Tickets to the Mercury’s Round 1 playoff game at Wells Fargo Arena on September 6 can be purchased by calling 602.252.WNBA or by visiting PhoenixMercury.com.