Phoenix Mercury star Kahleah Copper would have been suspended for one game following the team’s showdown with the Las Vegas Aces. Fortunately for her, that was also the team’s last game of the regular season.
Officials assessed Copper with a technical foul late in the fourth quarter of the game. After the Mercury forward shot a triple and missed, she appeared to complain to a referee, prompting the call.
It was Copper’s eighth technical foul of the season, which carries a $1,500 fine, according to the WNBA’s rules. Players who reach eight techs also receive a one-game suspension.
While Copper will have to pay the fine, she won’t get suspended because the Aces showdown is the final game of the regular season, and suspensions from technical and flagrant fouls don’t carry over to the playoffs or the next campaign.
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The Mercury missed the playoffs after finishing with a 16-28 record, putting them at No. 12 in the WNBA standings.
Copper and the Mercury lost to the Aces, 100-82. The veteran WNBA star led the way for Phoenix with 18 points, six rebounds, three assists and three steals. Unfortunately, she didn’t get much help from her teammates, with Natasha Mack (12) and Shay Ciezki (13) the only other players from the Mercury to score in double figures.
In contrast, four players scored in double digits for the Aces, led by A’ja Wilson, who had 34 points on 16-of-28 shooting, along with 10 rebounds, four assists and one steal. Jewell Loyd added 25 points for Las Vegas.
The only real good news for the Mercury in the game was Alyssa Thomas setting a new record for assists in a single season with 358, in which she also prevented Caitlin Clark from making history.
