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Mercury-Sky Preview

Aug 17, 2009 - 6:13 PM By SANTOSH VENKATARAMAN STATS Senior Writer

Phoenix (17-8) at Chicago (13-12), 8:00 p.m. EDT

Although the Phoenix Mercury have never lost to the Chicago Sky, All-Star guard Cappie Pondexter has not fared well in her hometown.

Pondexter hopes to perform better at Chicago on Tuesday night when the Mercury try to improve to 8-0 against the Sky.

Phoenix (17-8) is the only team Chicago (13-12) has not beaten. The Sky are in playoff contention for the first time in their fourth year, sitting in fourth place in the Eastern Conference.

Chicago can move into third if it can defeat Phoenix for the first time. To do so, the Sky will likely have to slow down the Mercury's high-scoring duo of Diana Taurasi and Pondexter.

Taurasi leads the league with 20.8 points per game while Pondexter is fourth at 19.1. Pondexter, who starred at Marshall High School in Chicago, came into the league in 2006 - the same year the Sky began play.

Pondexter has excelled in Phoenix against the Sky, averaging 22.0 points and shooting 48.5 percent in four games. She scored 16 in a 90-70 home victory over her hometown team July 8.

It's been a different story for Pondexter in Chicago, where she has averaged 13.0 points on 35.3 percent from the field in three contests.

The West-leading Mercury caught a break last month when they faced a Sky team that was without the injured Sylvia Fowles. The All-Star center sat out with right knee soreness, but has returned and was a major factor last weekend in helping Chicago win on consecutive nights.

Fowles averaged 18.0 points and 9.0 rebounds as the Sky won 88-77 at New York on Friday and 79-76 over Minnesota on Saturday.

Chicago also got a major boost from reserve guard Erin Thorn. She averaged 13.5 points and 4.0 assists in the two victories, finishing with 17 and six Saturday.

The Sky had nine healthy players as starting guard Brooke Wyckoff (unspecified illness) and reserve guard K.B. Sharp (sore right knee) sat out.

"We've all had to step up the last couple of games because we've been dropping like flies," Thorn said. "But whatever they need, we've been ready."

Chicago is 9-2 at home, second-best in the league.

Phoenix got 21 points from Taurasi and 20 from Pondexter on Saturday, but no one else reached double figures in a 106-89 loss at San Antonio. The Mercury have five players who average in double digits.

"We usually have six players in double figures, but that wasn't the case tonight and that definitely didn't help our cause," coach Corey Gaines said.