“They haven’t seen us at full strength, so we’re ready to play,” Alyssa Thomas warned ahead of the semifinal series against the Minnesota Lynx. On paper, the Mercury had struggled in the regular season, going 1-3 against Minnesota–but none of those games had featured their full “big three” together. The stakes and the hype were always going to be high, especially after they had just knocked off the defending champions. But Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve had her own take on the looming clash.

Coach Chery Reeve had a hilarious take on facing the Mercury defense and Alyssa Thomas ahead of the game. “Yeah, I don’t think you can necessarily do anything over the last 40 hours. Prepare for it, get your rest, eat your Wheaties, I don’t know. I think we know it. I mean, these guys, we’ve played in a series with AT before, so we understand it. It’s not easy to play against. I mean, obviously, she’s great at what she does. And we’ll try to be intelligent about whether it’s her physicality or her disrupting and all the things that she does. You know, the WNBA’s version of the tush-push is here in their flat screen that they run. And we’ll see how it goes for us. But if it doesn’t go well for us, we’re gonna be petitioning to get that shit out of our league. “

If you are wondering what tush-push is, then keep reading.

Well, it’s no easy task to find new ways to attack a defense that has locked down the perimeter, holding opponents to just 32.1% from deep and 42.7% overall. A big reason for that? The arrival of triple-double queen Alyssa Thomas. No one sets up their defenders and then makes the decisive play better than AT.

A perfect example came early in the game against the Dallas Wings. Li Yueru went head-to-head with Kathryn Westbeld, who managed to completely shut her down. But AT swooped in, timed it perfectly, and stole the ball before Yueru even had a chance to react, showing exactly why she’s such a game-changer.

Phoenix’s high-ball pressure is at the heart of everything they do on defense. Mercury defenders aggressively pick up the opposing ball handlers, disrupting their rhythm and preventing them from getting into plays or sets– a collective way to box out the opposition from getting in rhythm. Another key play in their arsenal is the “trap the box.” In this play, a defender rotates from the weak side to the strong-side block to contest a shot, keeping opponents constantly on their toes.

Cheryl Reeve sarcastically described the Mercury’s defense as a “tush push.” Why? In American football, a “tush push” is a short-yardage play where, in addition to the offensive line surging forward, two players behind the quarterback physically push him ahead to gain a first down or touchdown–something the Philadelphia Eagles have perfected, though it’s now facing heavy criticism across the league.

Reeve’s comparison highlights how the Mercury defend collectively, swarming as a unit to overwhelm their opponents and make even small gains extremely difficult. The Minnesota Lynx coach even joked about complaining to the league about getting their (Mercury) defensive plays banned.

But the question remained: could Cheryl Reeve and the Lynx figure out a way to break through the Mercury’s “flat screen” defense?

The Minnesota Lynx find a way to penetrate the Mercury defense

Alyssa Thomas carried the Mercury through the first half, scoring 16 points and giving her team a 7-point lead at the break. But the Minnesota Lynx flipped the script in the second half, thanks to a dominant performance from Courtney Williams. As Coach Reeve revealed, “She [Courtney] was in the conversation at halftime and she was like, ‘Can we try this? Can we do this?’… so she kind of put her money where her mouth is.”

Courtney scored 12 points and grabbed three steals in the second half, making plays on both ends, and finished the game with a team-high 23 points, 8 rebounds, and 7 assists. The Lynx also turned the Mercury’s 10 turnovers into 11 points and dominated the boards, 23-19, to take control of the game and cruise to an 89-62 victory.

The Minnesota Lynx still need two more wins to punch their ticket to the finals–which also gives the Mercury a chance to mount a comeback, just like they did against the Liberty in Round 1. Who do you think will make it to the finals? Drop your thoughts in the comments below!