The Phoenix Mercury were looking to extend a winning run on Tuesday in a home game against the Toronto Tempo. Instead, they faced an uncomfortable awakening about the team’s defense in a 90-98 loss. Veteran Alyssa Thomas wasted no time going public with her concerns after the game, prompting teammate Kahleah Copper to double down.

“I think we’re nowhere near where we need to be defensively. It’s gonna be a long season if we don’t get it together on the defensive end,” Thomas said in her assessment of the game. Putting into perspective, Thomas’ frustration was understandable. Meanwhile , Copper feels these defensive struggles can be put to an end through teamwork.

“I think we just got to help each other,” Copper said. “If someone’s not in the right place or somebody’s getting beat one-on-one, we just got to cover for each other. We got to fly around more. I think we kind of fell into some one-on-ones, not having each other’s back.”

The game’s box score speaks for itself about Phoenix’s dismal defense. They allowed the Toronto Tempo to take 74 shots from the field. Although they also took 70 shots in return, the team’s defensive sharpness was nowhere to be found. And to be honest, there was no difference in the situation for Mercury from beyond the arc.

The Toronto Tempo took comfortable shots from the deep. Marina Mabrey scored 6 three-pointers while Brittney Sykes sank 4 from beyond the arc as the team concluded the night with 15. Against it, Mercury hit just 4, making a glaring difference of 11 three-pointers.

It pushed back the Phoenix Mercury immediately. Mabrey and Sykes sliced through the Mercury defense, scoring 61 points combined on the night. No doubt the team made clean plays, giving away just 17 fouls. But subsequently, they will also need to make defensive stops. It could have been avoided if the team had placed greater emphasis on its defensive schemes.

As Kahleah Copper said, the Mercury players are getting double-teamed on some plays, making it extremely difficult for them to protect the rim. It’s something that head coach Nate Tibbetts will have to address immediately in training. He will have to regroup his team to ensure they are on the same page.

“Collectively, we just got to decide to commit to the group and play as a team,” he said in the press conference. “And the number one thing is like ‘what is going to take to help the Mercury win,’ and I don’t think we understand where that is right now.”

The greater concern for Kahleah Copper and the team is that this dismal defense on Tuesday wasn’t just a one-off. In fact, the Mercury has conceded 85+ points in three games this season and has lost all of them. In fact, the Phoenix Mercury ranks among the bottom five teams in limiting opponents’ three-pointers.

This says a lot about the team’s defensive inconsistencies this season. It’s quite different from the last season when they were a daunting defensive side with players like Satou Sabally in the frontcourt. This season, the house of cards seems to be collapsing for Phoenix, and they will need to take immediate notice in this regard.

But on an individual level, Kahleah Copper faced another adversity during the Toronto Tempo game.

Kahleah Copper Faces Offensive Inconsistency in Toronto Tempo Loss

Now, offensive inconsistency isn’t something that you’d associate with Kahleah Copper often. For a player who leads her team in points and has been scoring consistently for the last decade, the headline just doesn’t suit Copper.

But the game on Tuesday pushed this narrative to a certain extent. Copper’s stat line looked impressive. 18 points with 7 of 18 from the field and 4 assists are quite a decent performance. But it just doesn’t end there for the 10-year veteran.

In her entire game, Copper couldn’t nail a single three-pointer. She did make 4 attempts from deep, but the night wasn’t hers for the taking. Copper started the game quite well, nailing a driving layup to tip off her scoring. All in all, the Phoenix Mercury scored 8 in the first quarter.

But immediately in the second quarter, Copper had 0 points to her name. She returned strong in the third, recording 10 before fading away again in the 4th quarter with 0 points. It’s something that Kahleah Copper will have to take notice of.

A bit more effort and efficiency would have easily made it a 25+ point night for Copper. And subsequently would have bridged the margin with Tempo. After this defeat, Copper and the Phoenix Mercury will have around a day to reconsider their plans before they take the court against the LA Sparks on May 21 at the Mortgage Matchup Centre in Phoenix.