Diana Taurasi looked like she might need to come off the floor multiple times on Sunday. She winced and she hobbled, favoring the injured left ankle that kept her out of the Mercury’s first-round win over the Liberty, the one that earned them the chance to meet Seattle in this second-round, single-elimination game.

But Taurasi kept on playing. Not only that: She made two big shots and one key free throw in overtime that helped the Mercury upset the defending champion Storm on their home court, 85-80, and advance to their seventh WNBA semifinals in the last nine seasons.

Brittney Griner led Phoenix with 23 points (on 11-for-17 shooting) and 16 rebounds. Taurasi finished with 14 points, five assists and four rebounds — on one good leg.

“Obviously you want to be out there with your teammates, and we’ve had such a grind of a season,” Taurasi said after the win. “Against New York, I was just not ready to play. The decision was, ‘Can I help?’ And if I could help in any capacity, I was going to try to play today.”

The Storm — playing on Sunday without Breanna Stewart, who sat on the bench with a boot on her injured left foot — executed their game plan well in the first half. Seattle’s defense held Taurasi to just three points in the half and the entire Mercury team to nine in the second quarter, riding a 15-0 run to a 35-32 lead at the break.

But, as Storm head coach Noelle Quinn and Sue Bird explained after the game, sending double teams to Griner and switching guards on Taurasi to try to account for the extra space can only work for so long.

In other words, once Taurasi got hot from the field, it was game over.

“Dee gives them automatic confidence, swag, all of the above just by being on the floor,” Quinn said. “Early on, testing out her mobility, I thought we did a decent job. But what happens when you have the greatest player in our game on the floor is that she hits timely shots.”

“What happened in overtime was we made a couple mistakes that gave her two open shots,” Bird added. “And you can’t give a player like that an open look whether they’re on half a leg or not. Of course, that’s who she is, so it’s no surprise and that’s why you can’t make those mistakes.”

DIANA DOING GOAT THINGS IN OT! pic.twitter.com/I8sLe0LYOX

— Phoenix Mercury - X (@PhoenixMercury) September 26, 2021

Taurasi is not only a one-of-a-kind scoring threat; her mere presence also gives her team a sense of comfort. Skylar Diggins-Smith said again Sunday that she chose Phoenix in 2019 free agency so she could play with Taurasi and Griner. And Griner, when asked what’s allowed her to unlock another level in her game this season while seated next to Taurasi and Diggins-Smith during the postgame press conference, said: “When I look to my left and I see them, of course anyone would play with ease.”

The Mercury will meet the No. 2-seeded Las Vegas Aces in the semifinals, with Game 1 set for Tuesday at 10 p.m. ET (ESPN2). It will be Taurasi’s 10th semifinal series, all with Phoenix.

Bird, 40, was asked about her future after the game, including by ESPN’s Holly Rowe on the court as the Seattle crowd chanted, “One more year!” It’s still unclear whether she will come back to the Storm.

Taurasi, 39, is expected to return next season after signing a two-year maximum contract with Phoenix in February. She’s already won three championships with the Mercury during her 17-year career. As she goes for her fourth title — which, for what it’s worth, would tie her with Bird — Taurasi is focusing on simply being on the court for her teammates.

Because when their leader is in the lineup, the Mercury like their chances.

“For someone who hasn’t been able to run for three weeks almost … to come into overtime and make two big plays, that’s why they talk about she’s the GOAT, because she finds a way,” said coach Sandy Brondello.

“We got our GOAT back. She was a little fatigued out there. I’m not sure she’ll be able to walk tomorrow, but she grinded it out and found a way.”

A final buzzer moment. 💜🧡 pic.twitter.com/heUA2JvrJp

— Phoenix Mercury - X (@PhoenixMercury) September 26, 2021

Hannah Withiam is the Managing Editor at Just Women’s Sports. She previously served as an editor at The Athletic and a reporter at the New York Post. Follow her on Twitter @HannahWithiam.

The NWSL is expanding its footprint across ESPN, with the broadcaster signing on to carry 16 additional regular-season games in both the 2026 and 2027 seasons, upping the platform's total to 33 matches per year.

ESPN will also introduce a season-long "Match of the Week" centerpiece series, as well as live coverage of NWSL Decision Day, when eight concurrent matches will close out the season on the same day. 

"The NWSL showcases some of the best athletes in the world," ESPN EVP of programming and acquisitions Rosalyn Durant said in a press release. "We are proud to increase our commitment on ABC and ESPN, and to further elevate women's sports and the athlete stories."

This media rights extension builds on the league's ongoing blockbuster four-year, $240 million TV deal with ESPN, adding inventory for the final two seasons of the November 2023 agreement.

The deal expansion comes in light of the league's significant growth this season, with the NWSL seeing gains across both attendance and viewership, including a 72% year-over-year ratings rise on ESPN.

"This supplemental agreement underscores the growing demand for women's soccer and ensures our players and clubs receive the visibility they deserve on some of the most prominent sports platforms," said NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman in a statement.

The 2025 WNBA season is over for Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese, but the 23-year-old star is still making headlines, with Reebok set to drop her signature Angel Reese 1 sneakers on Thursday.

The Angel Reese 1 is a cornerstone of Reebok's re-entry into the basketball market, with the sportswear giant engineering the signature shoe for on-court performance by including features like responsive cushioning and added upper support.

Inspired by the brand's classic Mobius line, the shoes will hit the shelves in three colorways — an iridescent white "Diamond Dust," a bold pink "Mebounds," and a black and white "Receipts Ready" — with Reese's personal logo incorporated into the design.

Reese first signed with Reebok as an NIL athlete at LSU in 2023, a little over six months after winning the NCAA championship with the Tigers.

This week's rollout follows the July sneak peek of the signature sneakers worn by Reese on the cover of NBA 2K26's WNBA Edition.

"This isn't just a shoe, it's my style, my story, and my stamp on the game," Reese said in Reebok's press release. "I wanted to design a basketball shoe that elevates performance, innovation, style, and creative expression, all at once."

"Reebok and I built something that's true to who I am, and I hope it pushes others to stand in their power too."

How to buy the Angel Reese 1 Reebok sneakers

All three colorways of the Angel Reese 1 sneakers will be available for a retail price of $120 beginning at 10 AM ET on Thursday at Reebok.com as well as in select stores.

No. 5 New York Liberty star Breanna Stewart isn't letting Sunday's left knee knock take her off the 2025 WNBA Playoffs court, with the forward planning to compete in Game 2 against the No. 4 Phoenix Mercury on Wednesday night.

An emotional Stewart finished Game 1 on the bench, going down with a knee injury in overtime of the Liberty's 76-69 upset win over the Mercury on Sunday.

"What I felt in that moment scared me more than anything," Stewart told reporters on Wednesday morning.

A Monday MRI revealed a sprained MCL, and though the two-time WNBA MVP did not practice on Tuesday, she participated in the team's Wednesday shootaround and said her pain had diminished to a three out of 10.

"[As long as] I don't wake up from my nap and feel like s—t," said Stewart, "I'm willing to take that [chance of re-injury] because I want to be out with my team, and they told me that structurally everything looks OK."

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Even when the game-day status for Stewart was still unknown, New York Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello promised that the defending champions would give their star "as much time as we can."

"We know what's at stake," Brondello told reporters on Tuesday. "We don't want to go back to Phoenix [for Game 3], but they're going to come in hungry."

Stewart echoed that sentiment on Wednesday morning, saying "We want to finish it here. Not having to go back to Phoenix is our main priority."

How to watch the Phoenix Mercury vs. New York Liberty in Game 2

No. 5 New York will look to oust No. 4 Phoenix from the 2025 WNBA Playoffs with a first-round sweep on Wednesday night, when the Liberty host the Mercury for Game 2 at 8 PM ET.

The matchup will air live on ESPN.

Star sprinter Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is reaching new heights, setting a new US record for the 400-meter race in the event's Tuesday semifinals at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.

The four-time Olympic gold medalist finished the flat event in 48.29 seconds, shaving more than 0.40 seconds off the previous US record of 48.70 seconds set by track legend Sanya Richards-Ross in 2006.

Both her personal best and the fastest time in the world for that event this year, McLaughlin-Levrone's performance also makes her the seventh-fastest woman of all time in the 400-meter dash — elevating expectations that she could challenge the long-standing world record of 47.60 seconds, set by then-East German sprinter Marita Koch in 1985.

Known for her dominance in the 400-meter hurdles, the 26-year-old made the decision to focus on the flat 400-meter event ahead of this year's competition. 

"I definitely wasn't expecting that time," she said afterwards. "It just shows the fitness is there. I'm excited for the finals and grateful to have taken down a record by an amazing woman."

How to watch McLaughlin-Levrone in the 400-meter final

McLaughlin-Levrone will take aim at the 2025 World Athletics Championships' 400-meter podium — and, perhaps, another record time — during the event's final on Thursday.

The US star will race against 2024 Olympic champion Marileidy Paulino and silver medalist Salwa Eid Naser when the final begins at 9:24 AM ET.

Live coverage will air on USA Network.