Taurasi’s talent still undeniable
Former Husky continues to deliver big shots for Mercury in 17th season
She had been hounded defensively, knocked down, pressured at every turn it seemed.
And still, there was a sense of expectation in the air inside Mohegan Sun Arena Sunday night.
UConn legend Diana Taurasi had come alive in her Connecticut homecoming, hitting back-to-back 3-pointers to turn the lead in her team’s favor, 68-66.
At that point, with 5:54 to go, it was reasonable to wonder: What would Diana do next? Connecticut Sun head coach Curt Miller certainly did.
“You know,” Miller said, “it’s Diana being Diana. You know she’s going to take big shots. No one more in the league takes big shots, and it was that kind of game.”
Nobody’s made more big shots, either, even if that wasn’t the case in Connecticut’s 86-78 victory over Taurasi’s Phoenix Mercury.
Taurasi is in her 17th WNBA season. She’s scored a record 8,964 points, won two Finals MVP awards, made nine All-Star teams, and captured four Olympic gold medals. She plans to go for her fifth this summer in Tokyo.
Add it all up and it’s only a
matter of when, not if, Taurasi — popularly known as the GOAT — is inducted into the Hall of Fame.
“It’s a dream come true for a lot of people,” Taurasi said. “But right now, I feel like I still have a little bit more to write.”
The 38-year-old doesn’t plan on going anywhere anytime soon — so long as her body holds up. Back and hamstring injuries limited her to six games in 2019. In the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign, she played in 19.
“Look, she’s amazing,” Mercury head coach Sandy Brondello said. “She got hit a few times, but she just competes. She loves the moment. She’s still at the top of her game.”
For Taurasi, the return to Connecticut brought back a sense of nostalgia. Taurasi felt it on the bus ride from the airport to the team hotel, the trees passing her by.
She and the three other former Huskies on Phoenix — Bria Hartley, Kia Nurse, and Megan Walker — got to catch up with UConn coach Geno Auriemma for 10 minutes before Saturday’s practice at Mohegan Sun.
“I really do miss it,” Taurasi said.
Taurasi said she’d like to come back to Connecticut this winter with her wife, Penny Taylor, and their son, Leo, and spend more time with the Auriemmas.
But she has other business to tend to first.
In vintage Taurasi fashion, with Phoenix trailing by one, she drained a winning 3-pointer in the final seconds of Friday’s seasonopener against Minnesota.
For a stretch, it seemed as if Taurasi might have more magic in store against Connecticut. She hit a 24foot 3-pointer with 6:23 remaining in the fourth to give Phoenix a 65-64 lead, and then sank another from 23-feet on the Mercury’s next possession, delivering her first two field goals in more than two quarters.
She finished with a teamhigh 19 points (seven in the first), but misfired on a pair of open looks from the perimeter that could’ve changed the complexion of the game down the stretch.