Taurasi used injury time to heal body

She honed flexibility, conditioning, strength

NEW YORK — Diana Taurasi looks refreshed.

After cutting her overseas season short last winter because of an injury, Taurasi used the time to rest, recover and “tune up her body.”

“When you pile up those years of no mental rest, no physical rest, it catches up to you,” Taurasi told The Associated Press on Monday. “From January to the start of the season, I worked on myself in a lot of ways physically. A lot of things that were jacked up from wear and tear. It’s like taking a car to the body shop for the first time in 13 years.”

Taurasi, who is 10th in the league in scoring, averaging

18.6 points, said she did a lot of strength work and conditioning in the offseason and worked on her flexibility.

Taurasi, who turned 36 on Monday, said that she and spouse Penny Taylor started eating vegan about three years ago and that has helped her.

“You take for granted what you put in your body when you’re young. You feel like you can do

anything,” she said. “As you get older, you get conscious of what you’re eating and how that affects your body.”

Phoenix coach Sandy Brondello has seen a change in Taurasi.

“She had to work to get her body right, and it’s showing in her game and has been great for us,” she said. “We’ve put her back to the point guard and she’s not just a great shooter, she’s a great playmaker and does a fantastic job for us doing that.”

With a young son at home, Taurasi has also learned to enjoy

6. Minnesota (2-5): The Lynx haven’t been this far below .500 since drafting Maya Moore with the top pick in 2011.

7. Dallas (3-3): The Wings need to be more consistent on the road, where they are 1-3.

8. New York (2-2): Tina Charles helped the Liberty get new coach Katie Smith her first wins.

9. Chicago (3-3): The Sky have been riding the strong play of rookies Diamond Deshields and Gabby Williams with Stefanie Dolson and Allie Quigley injured.

10. Atlanta (2-3): The Dream followed a buzzer-beating win over Minnesota with a loss to Phoenix.

11. Las Vegas (1-5): The Aces got their first win and will look to build on that led by rookie A’ja Wilson, who is averaging 21.0 points.

12. Indiana (0-6): Rookie Kelsey Mitchell is 11th in the league in scoring.

road trips more.

“Sleep has been good,” she said, laughing. “You still find yourself getting up at 5:30 in the morning and then you’re like wait, I don’t have to get up. I go back to bed.”

Playeroftheweek

Tina Charles earned AP player of the week honors after helping New York go 2-0 last week. She averaged 28.5 points, 10 rebounds and 2.5 assists. Other players receiving votes were Dallas’ Liz Cambage and Seattle’s Breanna Stewart.