Phoenix rides four-game win streak into Chicago

Phoenix is looking around the Western Conference and seeing a changed landscape. While Minnesota is still the pace-setter, Los Angeles has Candace Parker and Alana Beard back on the floor and has found a way to win four of five games since Parker returned.

Tulsa, meanwhile, is floundering under the weight of an eight-game losing streak after the season-ending injury to point guard Skylar Diggins.

"People are starting to play at a high level," Mercury coach Sandy Brondello said. "And we are keeping an eye on it. But we need to worry about what we are doing."

The Mercury are surging as the final third of the WNBA schedule arrives. Phoenix heads into Sunday's game at Chicago (ESPN, 2 p.m. ET) on a roll, having won four straight since the All-Star break.

"We were down in three of those games, and we seem to be able to fight through it and win," Brondello said. "When we get down, our defense gets us back in the game. But we still have work to do."

DeWanna Bonner, who leads the Mercury in scoring at 17.9 points per game, said Phoenix is "finding our groove."

"We are playing together," said Bonner, who hit a buzzer-beater in overtime to defeat Tulsa on Tuesday. "We know we have our 'Big 3' to score for us -- me and Candice [Dupree] and Brittney [Griner], but we got a big game the other day from Monique [Currie]. Everybody is contributing."

Chicago knows the feeling. The Sky, who play a big game against Eastern Conference-leading New York on Friday, are 2-2 since the All-Star break, but they have won two in a row, including a 106-82 rout against Indiana.

Center Erika de Souza joined Chicago's roster two weeks ago in a three-way trade with Atlanta and Minnesota.

Sky coach Pokey Chatman said Chicago doesn't need de Souza to come in and light up the scoreboard. But the 6-foot-5 center is starting to look like the proverbial missing piece from a team that played without Sylvia Fowles in the paint in the first half of the season. Fowles is in Minnesota now, and de Souza, a Brazilian star who spent all of her nine WNBA seasons in Atlanta before being traded to the Sky, is filling an important need.

"She's a quality player with experience, a player that has size and gets rebounds and defends and runs the floor," Chatman said. "She gives us a presence in the middle. People mistake presence for points. And, make no mistake, I like points. But she got 10 rebounds in 17 minutes for us against Washington. She gives us protection inside. I don't need 15 [points] and 10 [rebounds] every game from her."

De Souza might draw some attention away from Elena Delle Donne, who is the league's leading scorer.

"People are all over Elena because they believe they are cutting off the head of the snake," Chatman said. "But we have a lot of heads."

The Sky once again find themselves in a competitive Eastern Conference, sitting in third place at 13-8 but only a game out of first. And now they have the experience of a WNBA Finals run from last season to light the path to the playoffs.

Chatman acknowledged that last year's long postseason run changed the game for the Sky, raising the bar on expectations.

"At the end of the day, that run last year gives us confidence that we can play with the best teams in the league," Chatman said. "Our players, of course, have high expectations, but they are more comfortable talking about them now. And that's because it's real, it's not just talk. And it reminds them to work hard."

As the defending WNBA champions, Bonner and her Phoenix teammates live in the same reality. But Bonner is quick to point out that only four players on the roster were part of last year's title.

"Our mindset isn't that we are going to defend that title, but we want to win another one," Bonner said. "Right now, we are looking to sneak up on Minnesota."