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Phoenix Mercury Clinches Berth In 2009 WNBA Playoffs

August 23, 2009 - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Phoenix Mercury News Release


PHOENIX - The Phoenix Mercury has become the first team in the WNBA this season to clinch a playoff berth, the club announced today.

"It's exciting for us to return to the postseason and know we're the first team this season to clinch a playoff spot," said Mercury General Manger Ann Meyers Drysdale. "We were confident that the moves we made this past offseason would be exactly what the team needed to get back in playoff form while keeping our core players intact and relying on our coaches' experience. We're looking forward to a challenging playoff run."

"It's definitely something to be proud of to be the first team in the league to clinch a playoff berth," said Mercury Head Coach Corey Gaines. "This is by no means our goal for the season, though. It's a mere stepping stone towards our ultimate goal - a championship."

The Mercury earns a trip to the postseason for the fifth time in the club's history and the second time in the last three seasons after Minnesota's loss to Connecticut last night. The last trip the Mercury made to the playoffs was in 2007, when the team entered the postseason as the top seed in the West. Averaging an unprecedented 95.8 points through the postseason, Phoenix swept its first two opponents before defeating the Detroit Shock in five games to earn the Valley's first professional basketball title.

The 18-9 (.667) Mercury owns a 2.5-game lead over the Seattle Storm for the top spot in the Western Conference. Phoenix is just five wins shy of the 2007 championship squad's franchise-record 23 wins with seven games remaining in the regular season.

Phoenix takes on the Los Angeles Sparks at STAPLES Center on Aug. 27 at 7:30 p.m. That matchup will be telecast live on NBATV and can be heard live on The Fan AM 1060 as well. The team returns home for an Aug. 29 matchup against the Connecticut Sun at US Airways Center at 7 p.m. Tickets are still available in the lower level starting at just $10.

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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