The Phoenix Mercury ended up on the wrong side of a topsy-turvy Game 1 of the WNBA Finals against the Las Vegas Aces. The 89-86 loss came down to fine margins as the Aces’ bench completely outscored Phoenix’s reserves 41-16.

Satou Sabally was put on the bench by head coach Nate Tibbetts after she picked up her fifth foul early in the fourth quarter. While she returned late in the quarter, the head coach explained his decision post-game.

“I haven’t really had time to process that, but we have had a pretty set rotation. I am glad to say they came back, I haven’t really heard for sure what had happened. But yeah, I mean, I saw her(Sabally) getting her fifth foul, and that changed some things for us too. So, different people will have to step up at different points of time,” he said,

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