On Friday night, the Phoenix Mercury received a big game from Brittney Griner to help them secure a home game in the upcoming WNBA Playoffs. Phoenix defeated the Connecticut Sun 86-66 which also caused the Sun to move into a tie with the New York Liberty for No. 3 in the playoff standings. Here's the latest Sun vs. Mercury game recap with top performers, game stats, a standings update and what's up next on the schedule for each of these teams.

WNBA game recap

WNBA All-Star Brittney Griner came through in a big way for the Phoenix Mercury on Friday.

Griner ended up scoring 31 points on 10-for-15 shooting and also grabbed eight rebounds for the night. Diana Taurasi chipped in 15 points and six boards on 6-for-15 shooting. Teammate Yvonne Turner finished with 13 points and five rebounds as well.

For the Connecticut Sun, they got only small contributions from many players. Only Alyssa Thomas finished in double-digits for scoring in the starting lineup. Thomas went 8-for-11 and had 19 points along with six rebounds. Brian Jones came off the bench to add 13 points and five rebounds, but that was it in terms of top scoring players. Jasmine Thomas had nine points and five assists, while Jonquel Jones was held to just five points and nine rebounds in 20 minutes of action.

Phoenix came out and dominated on their home court from the first quarter as they held Connecticut to just 10 points. At halftime, the Mercury held a 41-24 lead. Connecticut managed to outscore them 26-25 in the third, but were held to just 16 points in the final quarter. Ultimately, the Mercury held on for the impressive 20-point win over one of the league's top four teams.

The Sun were held to 36.8 percent shooting for the game, including just an 18.2 percent rate from downtown. Phoenix shot 44.6 percent overall and 31.3 percent from long range. Connecticut was able to get more rebounds with a 39-36 edge in the game but had 13 turnovers compared to 10 for the home team.

Standings & what's next

With the loss, the Connecticut Sun find themselves at 21-12 and in a third-place tie with New York heading towards the WNBA Playoffs. The Sun will wrap up their season with a game at Los Angeles against the Sparks on Sunday, while New York plays the Dallas Wings.

For the Phoenix Mercury, the win improved their record to 17-16 overall and 8-8 at home. They are third in the Western Division and will have at least a home game in the playoffs thanks to this win. Phoenix completes their regular season on Sunday when they'll host the Atlanta Dream at 4 p.m. Eastern Time.
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