Uncasville, Connecticut — Ty Harris clutched his ankle, a look of panic on his face, collapsed to the floor in pain, and Mohegan Sun Arena went silent.
Harris, the Connecticut Sun's starting guard, has established himself as a key member of a team seeking the franchise's first championship this season.
Then, four minutes into the first postseason game, she was carried off the court by her teammates and returned later with crutches and ice.
The fifth-year guard is averaging a career-high 10.5 points per game in 28.8 minutes this year while shooting 39.5 percent from three-point range, second on the team. The former University of South Carolina standout has solidified himself as a key part of the Suns' league-best defense and made the big leap from bench player to starter alongside Di'Jonai Carrington.
Harris' absence has been and will continue to be a major hindrance for the Suns, who have been near the bottom of the league in 3-point shooting percentage all season.
But they are one of the most experienced teams in the league, with a whopping 222 combined playoff appearances, and, perhaps more importantly, they made a move midseason that could change everything.
Marina Mabry deals.
Mabrey, a 5-foot-11 shooter, began the season as a member of the rebuilding Chicago Sky, but just a few months into the season, he was so confident he could help win a championship that he requested a trade. In an instant, Mabrey went from being a starter and one of the team's primary options to being a bench player.
From the beginning, she I wanted She came to Connecticut inspired by the idea of playing alongside veteran players like Alyssa Thomas and DeWanna Bonner, two players she loved growing up.
Despite boasting one of the best records in the league, Connecticut's decision to revamp its roster was unusual — trading veterans Rachel Banham and Moriah Jefferson for the ferocious shooter — but so far it looks like one of the smartest moves any team has made this year.
In Game 1 against the Fever, Mabry WNBA She set the league record for most points off the bench in a playoff game with 27 points, 20 of which came in the decisive second half of the game, when she and Caitlin Clark dominated in the third quarter to ultimately lead the Sun to the victory. more Rather than overcome the absence of one of their key players,
It’s exactly the performance the front office was hoping for when they pulled the trigger and it reflects the contributions she’s provided since arriving in Uncasville.
“The reason we had the opportunity to use her was because we knew she could overcome obstacles,” Suns head coach Stephanie White said after the team's 93-69 win over the Fever.
“We believe she is a player who will give us an added edge in our quest to win a championship this year,” Suns general manager Darius Taylor said in a press release announcing the trade in July.
When it was Mabry's turn on Sunday, she stepped up in historic fashion. Ty Harris was done, but the team had a weapon on the bench that they didn't have three months ago. And it allowed them to fight back in ways they otherwise couldn't.
“Losing somebody is not unusual for us,” Thomas said after the game. “Obviously, you don't want to see her go down, but [it’s a] “We have to have the mentality that the next person will rise up, but we still have to get it done there.”
In 16 regular-season games for the Suns, Mabry averaged 14.9 points and shot 42.4% from the 3-point line, far and away the best percentage of any player on the team. Her 2.6 3-pointers per game made up nearly half of Connecticut's game average (the Suns averaged 5.9 3-pointers per game during the regular season). And it's not just on the offensive end; she fits seamlessly into the team's defensive scheme, adding a polished offensive threat without sacrificing defensively. She was tasked with guarding Caitlin Clark for much of the second half.
“Marina gives our team another boost,” player Alyssa Thomas said after Mabry made her regular-season debut last month at Connecticut. “We need 3-point shots, and that's what she does best. 3-point shots are what you need to win championships and compete.”
Stephanie White, aware of how much attention she was receiving from opposing teams, stepped up Mabry's offensive efforts.
“Every time she takes a shot, I think it's going in and she's a threat whenever she has the ball,” White said. “You have to keep an eye on her and most of the time you're going to be guarding her with twos. Sometimes when she rotates personnel, you're guarding her with threes. She's been big for us and she's going to continue to be big for us.”
After the game, Mabry was asked if she was motivated to beat Caitlin Clark, whose jersey was on display among hundreds of fans at Mohegan Sun Arena.
“Everybody came tonight to see number 22, but number 5 was clearly more prominent. Did you take that as a personal challenge?” a reporter asked.
Mabry fired back, making it clear that his desire to excel as an individual was secondary to the ultimate goal of winning it all.
“Kaitlyn draws a lot of fans, she's great,” Mabry said. “Fans are free to come and see who they want to watch, but at the end of the day, we're out there trying to win. Whether the fans were rooting for the Fever or us, we were out there trying to win the game.”
The Suns still have a long road ahead of them, starting with their second game against the Fever on Wednesday. A win would see them in the semifinals, but a loss would force them into a fight or lose game in Indianapolis against the Fever and the winner of the first-round matchup between the Minnesota Lynx and Phoenix Mercuries, before likely facing either the New York Liberty or Las Vegas Aces in the finals.
There was only one game Sunday afternoon, but it showed how one midseason move can shake up a WNBA championship race, and veterans DeWanna Bonner (22 points) and Alyssa Thomas (triple-doubles with 12 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds) were their usual reliable bests.
But Marina Mabry was the clincher.
“We've been hoping to make the playoffs this whole season and that's what we're playing for,” Thomas said after the game. “This is just the beginning for us. Game 1, we're ready to go. We're excited to see what my teammates bring to the table tonight and we're hungry. We're ready for Game 2.”
