Preview: Mercury (3-4) at Lynx (6-2)
Date: June 27, 2015 8:00 PM EDT
Brittney Griner is eager to make her season debut after being entangled in a series of troubling off-court episodes.
The 6-foot-8 star will return to the Phoenix Mercury lineup Saturday night against the Minnesota Lynx having served her record seven-game suspension after a domestic violence arrest in April.
'Basketball is my safe zone, being back on the court means everything for me, basketball is my life,' Griner said in a phone interview with The Associated Press on Tuesday. 'I'm ready to go. I definitely have been watching and I have been doing everything off the court to be on the court.'
Besides the WNBA suspension, Griner pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct and agreed to undergo 26 weeks of domestic violence counseling. If she completes it, the charges will be dismissed. Griner and her then-fiancee Glory Johnson were arrested April 22 at their home in the Phoenix suburb of Goodyear.
It's been a crazy nine months for Griner since she helped the Mercury win the WNBA championship in September. First, she was the victim of a random knife attack in China, where she suffered a small cut when she was struck by a man while boarding a bus after practice last November.
Then there was the soap opera of the past few months with Johnson. The two All-Stars were arrested and then married a few weeks later. On June 4, Johnson announced via Instagram that she was pregnant through in vitro fertilization. A day later Griner said she was filing for an annulment.
Griner said her largest takeaway from the whirlwind six weeks was to 'listen to your gut. That's kind of like the biggest thing right now. If you see warning signs, listen to your gut. Get that gut feeling, take a step back.'
Last season's Defensive Player of the Year isn't the only one happy she's playing again.
'We're definitely a different team with her in the middle,' Mercury coach Sandy Brondello said. 'The good news, at least, is that even though she was suspended, she was able to practice with us so she's already familiar with this group.'
Griner, who has been playing 3-on-3 full court to get in game shape, averaged 19.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 2.3 blocks over three games as Phoenix beat the Lynx in the Western Conference finals.
In the final game of her suspension, the Mercury (3-4) lost to previously winless San Antonio 76-71 on Thursday. DeWanna Bonner had 17 points for Phoenix, which missed its first 10 shots and trailed 17-9 after one quarter.
Bonner led three Mercury starters in double figures with 17 points in an 81-66 win over the Mercury on June 14, their fourth victory in the last five regular-season meetings.
The Lynx (6-2) won for the third time in four games since that matchup Thursday, rallying from 18 down to beat Seattle 76-73. Damiris Dantas converted a go-ahead 3-point play with 18 seconds left to give Minnesota its first lead since being up 2-0.
Seimone Augustus led Minnesota with 24 points and moved past Chamique Holdsclaw for 16th place on the WNBA scoring list.
The Lynx missed all nine 3-point attempts against Phoenix earlier this month.
WNBA HEAD TO HEAD
Jun 14, 2015 Score ATS Results
MIN 66 Under: 147
PHO « 81 Cover: 23
Tools:
Sep 2, 2014 Score ATS Results
MIN 78 Over: 174
PHO « 96 Cover: 13
Tools:
Aug 31, 2014 Score ATS Results
PHO 77 Under: 159
MIN « 82 Cover: 2
Tools: Recaps
Aug 29, 2014 Score ATS Results
MIN 71 Under: 156
PHO « 85 Cover: 9.5
Tools: Recaps
Aug 9, 2014 Score ATS Results
MIN 80 Cover: 3
PHO « 82 Over: 162
Tools: Recaps
Jul 31, 2014 Score ATS Results
PHO 67 Under: 142
MIN « 75 Cover: 6
Tools: Recaps
Jun 18, 2014 Score ATS Results
MIN 79 Over: 171
PHO « 92 Cover: 8.5
Tools: Recaps
Jun 15, 2014 Score ATS Results
PHO « 80 Cover: 13.5
MIN 72 Under: 152
Tools: Recaps
Date: June 27, 2015 8:00 PM EDT
Brittney Griner is eager to make her season debut after being entangled in a series of troubling off-court episodes.
The 6-foot-8 star will return to the Phoenix Mercury lineup Saturday night against the Minnesota Lynx having served her record seven-game suspension after a domestic violence arrest in April.
'Basketball is my safe zone, being back on the court means everything for me, basketball is my life,' Griner said in a phone interview with The Associated Press on Tuesday. 'I'm ready to go. I definitely have been watching and I have been doing everything off the court to be on the court.'
Besides the WNBA suspension, Griner pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct and agreed to undergo 26 weeks of domestic violence counseling. If she completes it, the charges will be dismissed. Griner and her then-fiancee Glory Johnson were arrested April 22 at their home in the Phoenix suburb of Goodyear.
It's been a crazy nine months for Griner since she helped the Mercury win the WNBA championship in September. First, she was the victim of a random knife attack in China, where she suffered a small cut when she was struck by a man while boarding a bus after practice last November.
Then there was the soap opera of the past few months with Johnson. The two All-Stars were arrested and then married a few weeks later. On June 4, Johnson announced via Instagram that she was pregnant through in vitro fertilization. A day later Griner said she was filing for an annulment.
Griner said her largest takeaway from the whirlwind six weeks was to 'listen to your gut. That's kind of like the biggest thing right now. If you see warning signs, listen to your gut. Get that gut feeling, take a step back.'
Last season's Defensive Player of the Year isn't the only one happy she's playing again.
'We're definitely a different team with her in the middle,' Mercury coach Sandy Brondello said. 'The good news, at least, is that even though she was suspended, she was able to practice with us so she's already familiar with this group.'
Griner, who has been playing 3-on-3 full court to get in game shape, averaged 19.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 2.3 blocks over three games as Phoenix beat the Lynx in the Western Conference finals.
In the final game of her suspension, the Mercury (3-4) lost to previously winless San Antonio 76-71 on Thursday. DeWanna Bonner had 17 points for Phoenix, which missed its first 10 shots and trailed 17-9 after one quarter.
Bonner led three Mercury starters in double figures with 17 points in an 81-66 win over the Mercury on June 14, their fourth victory in the last five regular-season meetings.
The Lynx (6-2) won for the third time in four games since that matchup Thursday, rallying from 18 down to beat Seattle 76-73. Damiris Dantas converted a go-ahead 3-point play with 18 seconds left to give Minnesota its first lead since being up 2-0.
Seimone Augustus led Minnesota with 24 points and moved past Chamique Holdsclaw for 16th place on the WNBA scoring list.
The Lynx missed all nine 3-point attempts against Phoenix earlier this month.
WNBA HEAD TO HEAD
Jun 14, 2015 Score ATS Results
MIN 66 Under: 147
PHO « 81 Cover: 23
Tools:
Sep 2, 2014 Score ATS Results
MIN 78 Over: 174
PHO « 96 Cover: 13
Tools:
Aug 31, 2014 Score ATS Results
PHO 77 Under: 159
MIN « 82 Cover: 2
Tools: Recaps
Aug 29, 2014 Score ATS Results
MIN 71 Under: 156
PHO « 85 Cover: 9.5
Tools: Recaps
Aug 9, 2014 Score ATS Results
MIN 80 Cover: 3
PHO « 82 Over: 162
Tools: Recaps
Jul 31, 2014 Score ATS Results
PHO 67 Under: 142
MIN « 75 Cover: 6
Tools: Recaps
Jun 18, 2014 Score ATS Results
MIN 79 Over: 171
PHO « 92 Cover: 8.5
Tools: Recaps
Jun 15, 2014 Score ATS Results
PHO « 80 Cover: 13.5
MIN 72 Under: 152
Tools: Recaps
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