Mercury HC Locker Room Admission Has Strong Message For Playoffs Rivals Liberty

The Phoenix Mercury’s 2025 WNBA season was a tale of ups and downs. Just when it seemed like they were kicking into top gear, they would lose a couple of games here and there and lose the momentum. Due to that, and the New York Liberty’s struggles with injuries, it was a close battle between to two teams for the final spot to get the home court advantage. And despite losing three straight games to end the season, the Mercury were able to pip the Liberty and get the home court advantage for their first round clash.

However, despite the advantage, the New York Liberty showed why you should never count out the champions and won a tight 76-69 game in overtime. Now in a perilous position of a win-or-go-home game, the Phoenix Mercury are hoping to spring a surprise anyway possible and extend their season to at least one more game. Facing a do-or-die situation, Mercury head coach Nate Tibbetts has made a strong admission about his team and their chances of winning the series.

Answering a reporter, he said, “Yeah. I mean, even after the game the other night, I loved the vibe of the locker room. Obviously, we were all disappointed with the loss. I mean, it was a one-possession game. We wanted to win just as much as New York did and sometimes it goes your way and sometimes it doesn’t. To me, no one’s expecting us to win this series anyway. Everyone has picked New York, so we’re embracing it and we’re ready for the challenge.”

Even with a lower seed, the New York Liberty were the favorites in most people’s opinions. Sure, they stumbled a bit in the standings, but when all of your team’s best players miss games, it is understandable. Throughout the second half of the season, the Liberty were more concerned with being healthy at the right time rather than locking up a higher seed. While they did manage to win the first game, Nate Tibbetts’ comments will certainly put them under pressure to win at home and book their place in the second round. Another reason why he might have said that is to just lift some pressure off his players.

The playoffs are, anyway, a high-pressure situation. But when you add the related rivalries, such as Natasha Cloud being up against the team that traded her, that pressure is increased even further. Especially when the player you traded without even notifying was the best player on the floor, the narrative starts to change. Cloud played for Phoenix in 2024 but was traded away in the 2025 offseason. On February 2, 2025, Phoenix traded her to the Connecticut Sun in a four-team deal (involving Cloud, Rebecca Allen, and a draft pick for Alyssa Thomas and Tyasha Harris). However, despite all this, there may be a way opened up for the Phoenix Mercury to come back and even win this series.

Will the Phoenix Mercury Capitalize on Breanna Stewart’s Injury?

As the overtime period was more than halfway gone and the Liberty was closing in on a victory, a troubling sign came for them. Their star forward, Breanna Stewart, asked to be substituted due to a potential knee injury. With Stewie already missing 13 games during the regular season with a right knee bone bruise, this time around the injury was on her left knee. With her status for game 2 in the air, an opportunity for the Phoenix Mercury has opened up.

As per the latest update, Breanna Stewart’s status for the game will be a game-time decision. In case she misses the game, not only would the Liberty miss a career 20.5 points per game scored, but also a great defender and leader. This would give the Phoenix Mercury a chance to cash in and try and pull off a series-extending road win on the defending champions’ court.

Even if Breanna does play, there is a very small chance of her being 100%. In that case, it would give Mercury forward Satou Sabally to come back from the poor game she had last time around. In the last game, she scored just 11.8% from the floor for a measly 9 points. Without Breanna Stewart, she could try and get a better matchup and get back into her All-Star form.

While it remains to be seen if Breanna Stewart will make the game or not, Game 2 is certainly going to be a spicy affair. Will the Phoenix Mercury be able to pull this herculean task off? We’ll find out in just a few hours.