ORLANDO - Tan White, a veteran acquired in an offseason signing, and Seimone Augustus, a returning starter, scored 16 and 12 points, respectively, to lead the Lynx to a 72-64 victory over Phoenix on Friday in a WNBA preseason tournament.
The coaches' eyes, though, were more on how the rookies played. And they acquitted themselves pretty well.
Damiris Dantas, a 6-4 center from Brazil, played the most. She had eight points and four rebounds in 29-plus minutes. Wing Tricia Liston, a first-round pick from Duke, had eight points, six rebounds and made the only three-pointers she took. Coach Cheryl Reeve is looking for an outside shooter off the bench.
Three players for the Mercury scored in double figures. Candice Dupree had 14 points, Maggie Lucas 13 and 6-8 center Brittney Griner 12 and four rebounds.
The Lynx started four of their regulars — Janel McCarville at center, Maya Moore at forward and guards Augustus and Lindsay Whalen — and a third guard, White.
Augustus made her first three shots as the Lynx took a 13-8 lead and widened it to 24-24 by the end of the opening quarter. They did it partly by getting to the free throw line and making nine of nine attempts there.
By halftime, the Lynx led 39-26. The Mercury cut that 13-point deficit by seven in the third quarter and trailed only 56-50 into the fourth.
Both teams shot about the same: the Lynx 43.4 percent, the Mercury 41.7. But the early discrepancy in trips to the foul line continued throughout the game. The Lynx finished 24-for-35 while the Mercury was 11-for-17.
