The Phoenix Mercury were down 79-77 to the eighth-seeded New York Liberty as they approached the final minute of their do-or-die game Thursday night. In front of a roaring home crowd, Sophie Cunningham decided to do what she’d been doing all game and fired a 3-point shot, this time from the right side of the court, and sunk the most important basket of her life.

It marked a career-high 21 points for Cunningham and gave the Mercury the lead they needed to advance to the second round of the WNBA playoffs. The 25-year-old came off the bench to go 6-for-7 from the 3-point line and ignite her team in the second half.

Sophie Cunningham? More like Sophie Going Ham.

Her efforts, alongside Skylar Diggins-Smith’s 22 points and Brittney Griner’s 16 points and 10 rebounds, led the Mercury to a thrilling 83-82 win in the first-round, single-elimination game.

🚨 WE GOT OURSELVES A BALL GAME 🚨@sophaller knocks down ANOTHER clutch three 🤑

📺 ESPN2 pic.twitter.com/ym0RizEfM7

— WNBA (@WNBA) September 24, 2021

Mercury coach Sandy Brondello subbed Cunningham into the game in the second half to give the team a spark. The Mercury had let the Liberty close in on their 11-point lead and entered halftime down 41-37. Players began to lose momentum as New York outshot Phoenix 18-13 at the start of the second quarter; Diggins-Smith didn’t score a single point in that span.

“Sophie’s got a short-term memory,” Brondello said with a chuckle after the game. “That’s what I love about her, and she’s not afraid.”

The original plan when Cunningham subbed in was to get the ball to Diggins-Smith and Griner.

“I just went out there and I said, ‘Screw it, I’m just going to shoot the ball,’” she said.

The Columbia, Mo. native mentioned during a sideline interview after the third quarter that bringing energy is her role on the team, and so that’s what she did Thursday night, in whatever form the team needed it.

Typically playing between 16 and 24 minutes a game, Cunningham came into the game as an underdog.

The guard’s previous career-high was 19 points, achieved on June 28, 2019 in a game against the Indiana Fever when she went 3-for-3 from 3-point range. Her season-high was 17 points against the Atlanta Dream on Aug. 15.

On Thursday night, Cunningham scored 12 points in the third quarter alone, followed by another six in the fourth.

“On the stage that we had, it’s not easy coming in and playing,” Brondello said.

It wasn’t just 3-point shooting that Cunningham brought off the bench. She bounced around with a crowd-hyping energy and confidence that had everyone convinced she owned the court. By the final 10 minutes, her teammates were matching her pace, with Griner recording 14 points and Diggins-Smith 12 in the final stanza.

The only thing missing from Cunningham’s picture-perfect night was teammate Diana Taurasi, Cunningham’s favorite player growing up and now her teammate. Taurasi sat out of Thursday’s game with a left ankle sprain.

The Mercury will next face the Seattle Storm, who advanced to the second round on a bye, at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday.

"Woo" indeed @sophaller! 👏👏👏 pic.twitter.com/p994YaBxxN

— Phoenix Mercury - X (@PhoenixMercury) September 24, 2021

Top-seeded Montréal suffered a surprising loss in their first 2025 PWHL Playoffs game on Thursday, falling 3-2 to postseason debutant No. 3-seed Ottawa.

Despite a tense back-and-forth battle, Ottawa forward Shiann Darkangelo broke through with a third-period game-winning goal, pushing the Charge to an early lead in the best-of-five semifinal series.

The Victoire, who notably used their No. 1-seed advantage to handpick the Charge as their semis opponent, have yet to log a playoff win, adding Thursday's defeat to last season's first-round sweep by Boston.

Even so, Montréal is already viewing the loss as fuel to even the score this weekend.

"We outshot them, we had a lot of great opportunities. We were right there," said Victoire forward Laura Stacey. "If we can put that game together for a whole 60 minutes, it'll look scary I think."

Toronto takes Game 1 from defending champs Minnesota

In the PWHL's other semifinal matchup, No. 2-seed Toronto claimed a one-win advantage over No. 4-seed Minnesota on Wednesday, halting the defending champion Frost's late-season surge with a 3-2 Sceptres victory.

Captain Blayre Turnbull opened scoring in the first period, giving Toronto a lead that they never relinquished, while rookie Julia Gosling netted a second-period brace to secure the Sceptres' win.

Minnesota, acknowledging the tough road they face to return to the championship ice, has already set their eyes on Game 2.

"It's going to be a hard-fought series," said Frost head coach Ken Klee after the Frost's Game 1 loss. "We didn't get one tonight…[so now] we're looking forward to Friday."

How to watch the 2025 PWHL Playoffs this weekend

Toronto and Minnesota are back in action for Game 2 of their series at 7 PM ET on Friday, before traveling to St. Paul for Game 3 at 6 PM ET on Sunday.

Sunday will also see Montréal’s attempt to even their series with Ottawa, with the puck dropping on their Game 2 matchup at 2 PM ET.

All games will stream live on the PWHL YouTube channel.

The 2024/25 Women's Super League (WSL) season officially wraps on Saturday, with Chelsea preparing to claim even more history on the heels of their sixth-straight league title.

The still-undefeated Blues will face sixth-place Liverpool in their final outing, with Chelsea on the cusp of becoming the fourth-ever team to finish a WSL season unbeaten.

Should they do so, Chelsea will join 2012's Arsenal, 2016's Manchester City, and their own 2018 squad in achieving perfection — those this year's Blues would be the first to accomplish the feat in the expanded 22-match campaign.

While the team only needs a draw to remain undefeated, a win would secure Chelsea another record, becoming the first club to tally 60 points in a single campaign — two more than the current mark the Blues claimed in 2022/23.

Despite their astounding WSL record, the Blues have fought hard for their dominance this season, with first-year head coach Sonia Bompastor strategically using her entire roster to maintain the winning legacy left by now-USWNT boss Emma Hayes.

"Don't think it's easy. It's never easy," said Bompastor after Chelsea's 2024/25 title win. "It's a great achievement and a lot of work every day — I don't let my players breathe."

Battle for second-place continues on final WSL matchday

While Chelsea chases records, other top WSL clubs are still jockeying for positions on the league's final 2024/25 table.

Along with the Blues, Arsenal and Manchester United are locked into Champions League qualifying positions for next season — but United could leapfrog Arsenal for a second-place WSL finish on Saturday.

Separated by just one point, the Red Devils and the Gunners will face off against each other in the season's final blockbuster matchup.

Arsenal has extra incentive for a good showing, as the Gunners try to snap their two-game WSL losing streak and gain momentum before battling Barcelona in the May 24th Champions League final.

Chelsea also has a shot at another trophy looming, with the Blues chasing a second domestic treble — winning the league, FA Cup, and League Cup.

However, a tough Manchester United stands in the way of Chelsea's third and final treble title, with the pair facing off in the FA Cup's May 18th championship match.

How to watch WSL matches this weekend

All 12 WSL teams will kick off their season's last matches at 7:30 AM ET on Saturday.

Both Chelsea's game against Liverpool and Manchester United's visit to Arsenal will stream live on ESPN+.

As tune-up tournaments like this week's 2025 Italian Open dominate tennis ahead of the 2025 French Open, one familiar name is back in the headlines, with world No. 48 Naomi Osaka making significant strides on the clay court.

Coming off her first tournament win since 2021 at L'Open 35 de Saint-Malo — a WTA 125 event — last weekend, Osaka immediately advanced to the Italian Open's third round this week.

The four-time Grand Slam winner has shown glimpses of brilliance after returning from her 2023 pregnancy, with Osaka now aiming to keep up momentum on her historically weakest surface.

"Kinda ironic to win my first trophy back on the surface that I thought was my worst," Osaka posted after her May 4th victory. "That's one of my favorite things about life though, there's always room to grow and evolve."

Osaka isn't the only tennis star cooking in Europe, as heavy-hitters like world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, No. 2 Iga Świątek, and No. 3 Coco Gauff also moved ahead in Rome as they look to hone their Roland-Garros form.

Not usually a clay court specialist, Sabalenka has looked particularly formidable, defeating Gauff to take the 2025 Madrid Open title just last week.

How to watch the 2025 Italian Open

The 2025 Italian Open's Round of 32 kicks off early Saturday morning, with continuing coverage on The Tennis Channel.

Fresh off winning their first-ever WNBA title, the New York Liberty will kick off their 2025 preseason slate with in a Friday night clash against the Connecticut Sun — despite the reigning champs looking a little worse for wear.

Two-time WNBA MVP Breanna Stewart has been slowly recovering from offseason knee surgery, with the 30-year-old watching from the bench on Friday in an effort to return to full fitness for next week's season opener.

Similarly, star guard Betnijah Laney-Hamilton is likely out for the entirety of the 2025 WNBA season with a knee injury of her own, exiting the offseason 3×3 league Unrivaled with a meniscus injury in early March.

Meanwhile, starting sharpshooter Leonie Fiebich has yet to join the Liberty in training camp as the European standout finishes her overseas season with Spain's Valencia Basket.

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Liberty additions to make New York debut on Friday

That said, New York did manage to make a few savvy pick-ups ahead of the 2025 campaign, with the newly configured team eyeing a strong Friday showing to avoid rumors of a slow season start.

The Liberty traded for point guard Natasha Cloud and signed forward Izzy Harrison over the offseason, while also welcoming back guards Marine Johannes and Rebekah Gardner.

Given New York's lengthy availability report, Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello noted that the team's markedly late preseason start was not strategic, but merely a scheduling solution.

"Sometimes it's just out of our hands," Brondello told reporters. "This is the first home game that we've had because we've never been able to get the arena availability, so that's it. Ideally, we would have liked to play the game by now, but it is what it is."

How to watch the New York Liberty in the 2025 WNBA preseason

New York will tip off against Connecticut at 7 PM ET on Friday, with live coverage on WNBA League Pass.