In the city where she played high school ball, Cappie Pondexter helped the New York Liberty boost their playoff hopes in their last game. <\/p>\n
The league's second-highest scorer will try to deliver again in the place where she started her WNBA career. <\/p>\n
Pondexter and the Liberty look to extend the Phoenix Mercury's team-record losing streak to nine Thursday night when the clubs meet for the first time in 2012. <\/p>\n
Loser of four of five heading into Tuesday's game at Chicago, New York (8-13) won 77-67 to move within one-half game of the Sky for the fourth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. <\/p>\n
Pondexter, the first two-time Ms. Illinois basketball while at Marshall High School, scored 25 points to bump her average to 20.3. <\/p>\n
\"Obviously it's important because you have a buildup of excitement from being home, but more importantly we needed this win to inch closer to the playoffs,'' she said after New York improved to 1-1 on its five-game trip. <\/p>\n
Pondexter, who won WNBA titles with the Mercury in 2007 and 2009, returns to Phoenix for the third time since being dealt to New York in a three-team swap in 2010 that brought Candice Dupree to the Mercury. <\/p>\n
In New York's last game in the desert, Pondexter scored 17 of her 25 points in the final 6:32 of a 74-70 victory Aug. 23. <\/p>\n
It was a far better result than in her first trip to Phoenix as a visiting player, as she was ejected in the third quarter of a 97-82 loss July 3, 2010, for smacking Penny Taylor in the face on a layup attempt. <\/p>\n
The Mercury (4-17) have been dealing with plenty of frustration as they've gone winless since June 29 and are one game ahead of Tulsa - owner of the league's worst record. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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Liberty-Mercury Preview<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In the city where she played high school ball, Cappie Pondexter helped the New York Liberty boost their playoff hopes in their last game. The league's second-highest scorer will try to deliver again in the place where she started her WNBA career. Pondexter and the Liberty look to extend the Phoenix Mercury's team-record losing streak to nine Thursday night when the clubs meet for the first time in 2012 Continue reading