1997 Phoenix Mercury season

The 1997 WNBA season was the first for the Phoenix Mercury.

1997 Phoenix Mercury season
CoachCheryl Miller
ArenaAmerica West Arena
Attendance13,703 per game
Results
Record16–12 (.571)
Place1st (Western)
Playoff finishLost WNBA Semifinals

Offseason

Initial Player Allocation
Pick Player Nationality School
11 Michele Timms (G)  Australia Australia
12 Jennifer Gillom (C)  United States Mississippi

[1]

WNBA Elite Draft
Round Pick Player Nationality School
1 7 Bridget Pettis (F)  United States Florida
2 15 Nancy Lieberman-Cline (G)  United States Old Dominion

[2]

WNBA Draft
Round Pick Player Nationality School
1 7th Toni Foster Iowa
2 9 Tia Jackson (G/F)  United States Iowa

[2]

Regular season

Season standings
Western Conference W L PCT Conf. GB
Phoenix Mercury x1612.5719–3–
Los Angeles Sparks o1414.5008–42.0
Sacramento Monarchs o1018.3574–86.0
Utah Starzz o721.2503–99.0

Season Schedule
Date Opponent Score Result Record
June 22 Charlotte 76-59 Win 1-0
June 24 @ Houston 55-70 Loss 1-1
June 28 @ Cleveland 68-63 Win 2-1
June 29 @ New York 57-65 Loss 2-2
July 3 @ Utah 77-55 Win 3-2
July 7 New York 69-50 Win 4-2
July 9 Houston 69-64 Win 5-2
July 12 @ Utah 51-52 Loss 5-3
July 13 @ Los Angeles 57-56 Win 6-3
July 16 Sacramento 84-67 Win 7-3
July 21 @ Sacramento 70-57 Win 8-3
July 22 Houston 69-77 Loss 8-4
July 25 Los Angeles 83-86 (OT) Loss 8-5
July 28 Cleveland 64-76 Loss 8-6
July 30 @ Charlotte 67-68 Loss 8-7
July 31 @ Cleveland 67-79 Loss 8-8
August 2 @ New York 70-78 Loss 8-9
August 4 Sacramento 83-60 Win 9-9
August 6 Utah 78-46 Win 10-9
August 7 @ Houston 70-74 Loss 10-10
August 9 @ Charlotte 59-79 Loss 10-11
August 12 New York 77-67 Win 11-11
August 14 Cleveland 61-55 Win 12-11
August 17 Utah 71-63 (OT) Win 13-11
August 18 @ Los Angeles 66-75 Loss 13-12
August 20 @ Sacramento 69-54 Win 14-12
August 22 Charlotte 78-63 Win 15-12
August 24 Los Angeles 73-68 (OT) Win 16-12
August 28 (WNBA Semifinal) New York 41-59 Loss 0-1

Player stats

Note: GP= Games played; FG = Field Goals; MIN= Minutes; REB= Rebounds; AST= Assists; STL = Steals; BLK = Blocks; PTS = Points

Player GP MIN FG REB AST STL BLK PTS
Jennifer Gillom28874163151213715440
Bridget Pettis28842107107784912352
Michele Timms279669999137713326
Toni Foster28736246
Marlies Askamp28211
Umeki Webb28141
Tia Jackson2674
Nancy Lieberman-Cline2564
Tara Williams1237
Mikiko Hagiwara1233
Monique Ambers1914
Molly Tuter33000000
Ryneldi Becenti18000100

[3]

  • Toni Foster ranked ninth in the WNBA in total rebounds with 172
  • Toni Foster was ranked ninth in the WNBA in steals with 53.
  • Toni Foster tied for seventh in the WNBA in blocks with 21.
  • Toni Foster ranked seventh in the WNBA in Field Goal Percentage (.468)
  • Jennifer Gillom ranked tenth in the WNBA in Free Throw Pct with .777
  • Jennifer Gillom ranked fourth in the WNBA in field goals with 163
  • Jennifer Gillom ranked fifth in the WNBA in points with 440 points.
  • Jennifer Gillom ranked fifth in the WNBA in points per game with 15.7
  • Bridget Pettis was tied for tenth in the WNBA in steals with 49.
  • Michele Timms ranked third in the WNBA in minutes per game with 35.8
  • Michele Timms ranked second in the WNBA in steals with 71.
  • Michele Timms ranked third in the WNBA in assists with 137.
  • Chantel Tremitiere ranked fourth in the WNBA in assists with 135.
  • Umeki Webb ranked fourth in the WNBA in steals with 68.

Awards and honors
  • Jennifer Gillom, Center, All-WNBA Second Team [4]
  • Bridget Pettis: Led WNBA, Free Throw Percentage, .898 [5]
  • Michele Timms: Third in WNBA, 3-Pt Field Goals, 49

Playoffs

Lost WNBA Semifinals (1-0) to New York Liberty

References
  1. "All-Time WNBA Draft Picks - WNBA.com - Official Site of the WNBA". Archived from the original on 2015-09-13. Retrieved 2008-10-14.
  2. "WNBA.com: Phoenix Mercury Draft History". www.wnba.com.
  3. "1997 Phoenix Mercury Stats - Basketball-Reference.com". Basketball-Reference.com.
  4. "WNBA.com: Postseason Awards: 1997". www.wnba.com.
  5. "1997 WNBA Season Summary - Basketball-Reference.com". Basketball-Reference.com.
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