Alyssa Thomas scores career-high 29 and the Mercury close on a 19-4 run to beat the Lynx 79-71

PHOENIX (AP) — Alyssa Thomas scored 12 of her career-high 29 points in the fourth quarter and the Phoenix Mercury closed on a 19-4 run to beat the Minnesota Lynx 79-71 on Wednesday.

Thomas, who was coming off her 16th career triple-double on Monday, was 14 of 24 from the field to top her previous high of 28 points. She also had eight rebounds and five assists.

Phoenix tied it at 69 and 71 before Thomas scored on back-to-back possessions to take a 75-71 lead. She scored 10 points during the Mercury’s game-closing run.

DeWanna Bonner, Thomas’ fiancee and former Connecticut Sun teammate, signed with Phoenix as a free agent on Tuesday and played her first game since June 10. Bonner, who spent the first 10 years of her career with the Mercury and helped them win titles in 2009 and 2014, finished with seven points and six rebounds in 26 minutes.

Monique Akoa Makani added 13 points and Sami Whitcomb, coming off a career-high 36 points, scored 10 for Phoenix (14-6). The Mercury were without Satou Sabally (right ankle) and Kahleah Copper (right hamstring) for a second straight game.

Courtney Williams led Minnesota (17-3) with 21 points. Napheesa Collier added 18 points and Bridget Carleton scored 10.

Williams' off-balance 3-pointer with the shot clock winding down gave Minnesota a 67-60 lead with 5:45 remaining. But the Lynx made only two field goals the rest of the way — both by Collier at 4:01 and 2:56.

Phoenix was 1 of 16 from 3-point range but still shot 47% overall. The Mercury also made all 10 of their free-throw attempts.

AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball

Minnesota Lynx guard Courtney Williams, center, drives past Phoenix Mercury forward Kathryn Westbeld (24) and Mercury guard Kitija Laksa, right, during the first half of a WNBA basketball game Wednesday, July 9, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Minnesota Lynx guard Courtney Williams (10) drives past Phoenix Mercury forward Natasha Mack (4) and Mercury guard Monique Akoa Makani to score during the first half of a WNBA basketball game Wednesday, July 9, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier (24) drives past Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas, left, during the first half of a WNBA basketball game Wednesday, July 9, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Phoenix Mercury forward DeWanna Bonner celebrates a Mercury score as Minnesota Lynx forward Alanna Smith (8) pauses on the court during the second half of a WNBA basketball game Wednesday, July 9, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Phoenix Mercury forwards Alyssa Thomas, left, DeWanna Bonner, center, and Kathryn Westbeld (24) celebrate a score against the Minnesota Lynx during the second half of a WNBA basketball game Wednesday, July 9, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

MARTIGNY, Switzerland (AP) — Switzerland will hold a memorial service Friday, part of a national day of mourning to honor the 40 people who were killed in an Alpine bar fire earlier this month during a New Year's celebration.

An additional 116 people were injured, many of them seriously, when the fire broke out less than two hours after midnight at the Le Constellation bar on Jan. 1.

Investigators have said they believe sparkling candles atop Champagne bottles ignited the fire in the resort town of Crans-Montana when they came too close to the ceiling. Authorities are looking into whether soundproofing material on the ceiling conformed with regulations and whether the candles were permitted for use in the bar. Fire safety inspections hadn’t been carried out since 2019.

The severity of burns made it difficult to identify some victims, requiring families to supply authorities with DNA samples. Police have said many of the victims were in their teens to mid-20s.

Swiss authorities have opened a criminal investigation into the bar managers. The two are suspected of involuntary homicide, involuntary bodily harm and involuntarily causing a fire, according to the Valais region’s chief prosecutor.

As part of the national day of mourning, church bells across Switzerland will ring for five minutes, beginning at 2 p.m. local time Friday, and a minute of silence will be held.

The Rome prosecutor’s office has opened an investigation into the Crans-Montana fire, alleging manslaughter and arson, Italian media reported Thursday. An autopsy has been ordered for five of the six Italian victims and has been delegated to the prosecutors' offices in Milan, Bologna, and Genoa, where the bodies of the victims have been returned.

The Paris prosecutor’s office Monday announced that it was opening a probe to assist the Swiss investigation and make it easier for families of French victims to communicate with Swiss investigators. Nine French citizens were killed, the youngest of them aged 14, and 23 others were injured.

The owners of the "Le Constellation" bar in Crans-Montana, where the deadly fire happened on New Year's Day, Jacques und Jessica Moretti from France, center, arrive with their lawyers Patrick Michod, Yael Hayat and Nicola Meier, to be auditioned by the Valais public prosecutor's office in Sion, Switzerland, Friday, January 9, 2026. (Jean-Christophe Bott/Keystone via AP)

Plaques bearing flags representing Switzerland, Romania, Italy, Portugal, Belgium, France, and Turkey are placed along with flowers and candles to honor the victims of the fire at the "Le Constellation" bar and lounge, in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (Cyril Zingaro/Keystone via AP)

Mourners gather around flowers and candles to commemorate the victims of the "Le Constellation" bar and lounge's fire, in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (Jean-Christophe Bott/Keystone via AP)

FILE - A child watches as an adult places a candle outside the sealed off Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana, Swiss Alps, Switzerland, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, where a devastating fire left dead and injured during the New Year's celebrations. (AP Photo/Baz Ratner, File)