Leila Lacan scores career-high 26 points, Sun beat Mercury 96-83

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PHOENIX (AP) — Leila Lacan scored a career-high 26 points on 10-of-13 shooting from the field to lead the Connecticut Sun to a 96-83 victory over the Phoenix Mercury on Friday night in the first of back-to-back meetings between the teams.

The Sun (7-18) have won consecutive games for just the second time this season and are 5-3 in their last eight.

Kennedy Burke had 13 points, Brittney Griner and Aaliyah Edwards scored 12 apiece and Diamond Miller added 11 for the Sun.

Kahleah Copper had 21 points to lead the Mercury (8-18), who have lost five straight. Alyssa Thomas had 15 points, eight rebounds and six assists, Valeriane Ayayi scored 13 points and DeWanna Bonner grabbed 10 rebounds to go with eight points.

Lacan hit a 3-pointer, converted a three-point play and then made a layup that capped an 11-0 run and gave Connecticut a 19-point lead with 4:10 remaining in the second quarter.

The Mercury were scoreless for nearly four minutes, went without a made field goal for almost five and committed eight of their 13 turnovers in the second quarter.

Griner, who spent her first 11 WNBA seasons with the Mercury, played just her second game in Phoenix since she and the franchise parted ways following the 2024 season.

Saniya Rivers returned from a two-game absence due to a left ankle sprain and had six points in 14 minutes off the bench for the Sun.

Monique Akoa Makani took an incidental elbow from Griner to the face in the opening seconds and went to the locker room briefly. The second-year guard finished scoreless on 0-for-6 shooting.

Aneesah Morrow (reconditioning) missed her fifth consecutive game.

The teams meet again Sunday in Phoenix.

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AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball