Storm go for two wins, two nights in a row!

Records: Seattle Storm (6-17) at Phoenix Mercury (14-8)
Location: Phoenix, Arizona - US Airways Center
Game Time: 08/12/15 - 7:00pm PST
Broadcast: NBA TV and Live Access
Season Series: Phoenix leads 3-0; last loss 70-60 @ Phoenix on July 12th.

Seattle plays a rare second game in back-to-back nights.  The game against Phoenix tonight will be the final game of their six game road trip.  This road trip is the longest of the season, where the Storm have unfortunately faltered, going 1-4.

The bright side is that the Storm played very well as a team in yesterday's 85-77 victory against the Los Angeles Sparks.  The team showed great heart and overcame a 16 point 3rd quarter deficit to win.

But it won't be easy tonight, as Phoenix has been on a roll and has already defeated the Storm three times this season.  The Mercury have defeated the Storm eight times in a row and have also won 11 of their past 14 games overall.  Despite being without perennial All-Star Diana Taurasi, the reigning WNBA Champions are 14-8 and are in 2nd place in the Western Conference.  The team is led by three star players (even without Taurasi): Brittney Griner, DeWanna Bonner, and Candace Dupree.  Bonner is having one of the best seasons of her career, leading the Mercury in scoring at 17.4 PPG and assists at 3.6 APG.  She is also 2nd in rebounds at 6.3 RPG.  Brittney Griner is 2nd in scoring at 16.3 PPG and first in rebounds at 8.9 RPG.  Candace Dupree rounds out the trio by averaging 15.2 PPG and 4.8 RPG.

WHAT TO WATCH:
Crystal Langhorne has been an offensive scoring machine lately.  Her last two games she's averaged 23.5 PPG and has led the team in scoring in both.  However, she has struggled to score against the taller Phoenix lineup and only scored 11 points total in the past two games against the Mercury.  Can she continue her strong scoring or will Phoenix's defense be too much for her to overcome?

Can Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis continue to provide a bigger role off the bench?  Yesterday's game against the Sparks was the best of KML's young career so far.  She had 15 points total in just 12 minutes of action, including two 3-pointers, and 12 points in the 2nd quarter alone.  The Storm need her instant offense if they're going to become a playoff team (this year or in the future).  Was yesterday's game the start of a bigger role for Mosqueda-Lewis?