Sun head to semifinals for fifth straight season.
Minneapolis, MN (September 20, 2023)- Tonight, the Connecticut Sun defeated the Minnesota Lynx in a winner-take-all Game 3 of the opening round of the WNBA playoffs. With the win, the Sun advance to the WNBA Semifinals to take on the No. 2 seed New York Liberty.
The Sun was led by Alyssa Thomas who tied her postseason career-high with 28 points, along with six rebounds, 12 assists and one steal.
1Q- Connecticut opened the contest outscoring Minnesota, 15-6, forcing the Lynx into a timeout with 5:37 remaining in the first quarter. All five starters scored in the opening stretch with Alyssa Thomas and DeWanna Bonner leading the way with an early four points apiece. The Lynx finished the quarter on a 13-11 spurt to cut the Sun’s lead to seven, 26-19, heading into the second. Thomas and Bonner each had eight points through ten minutes to lead Connecticut.
2Q- Minnesota began the second on a 6-0 run, prompting Connecticut to take a timeout with 7:55 remaining in the first half, 26-25. Connecticut responded on a 11-4 run to push their lead back up to eight, 37-29, with 4:25 to go in the second. Ty Harris tallied five of the Sun’s 11 on that stretch. The Sun finished the first on a 12-5 spurt, taking a 15-point advantage into the locker room, 49-34.
Thomas led the Sun with 14 points, three rebounds, six assists and one steal, while Bonner added 14 points, three rebounds, three assists and one block at the break. Connecticut shot 58.3% (21-36) from the field, while holding Minnesota to 40% (12-30) through two quarters of play. The Sun won the battle in the paint, 28-14, and on the fast break, 12-5, through twenty minutes of action.
3Q- The Sun began the second half on an 8-4 run to extend their lead to 19, 57-38, and forcing the Lynx into a timeout with 6:53 to go in the third. Bonner had six of Connecticut’s eight on that opening stretch out of the locker room. The Lynx responded on a quick 6-0 spurt to close the gap to 13, 57-44, with 5:17 left in the quarter. Connecticut was able to close the quarter on a 9-5 run to take a 16-point lead into the fourth, 65-49. Bonner had six points, while Thomas added five points and three assist to lead the Sun in the third quarter.
4Q- The Lynx outscored the Sun, 5-2, to open the fourth quarter to cut the lead back down to 13, 67-54, with 8:42 remaining in the game. Connecticut was able to close out the quarter outscoring Minnesota, 23-21, to take home the 90-75 victory. Harris stepped up big for the Sun offensively in the closing quarter, leading the way with 10 points in the closing ten minutes to seal the victory.
Minnesota was led by Napheesa Collier who notched 31 points, five rebounds, two assists and one block on the night.
Sun Notes:
- DeWanna Bonner finished with a double-double, tallying 25 points, 10 rebounds, six assists, one steal and three blocks.
- Ty Harris tallied 18 points, one rebound and one assist. She went 4-6 from beyond the three-point arc.
- With 25 points in the win, DeWanna Bonner eclipsed 1,000 points in her WNBA postseason career.
- She joins Diana Taurasi, Tamika Catchings, Candace Parker and Maya Moore as the only players in WNBA history to achieve the feat.
- With two assists on the night, Natisha Hiedeman moved into sixth all-time in assists in Connecticut Sun postseason history (69).
- With three blocks in the game, DeWanna Bonner moved into ninth all-time in blocks in WNBA postseason history, tying Rebekah Brunson (61).
- With eight field goals on the night, DeWanna Bonner moved into fifth all-time in field goals made in WNBA postseason history (356).
- With three three-point field goals in the win, DeWanna Bonner moved into seventh in three-point field goals made in WNBA postseason history (86).
- With a double-double tonight, Alyssa Thomas moved into fourth all-time in double-doubles in WNBA postseason history (18), tying Lisa Leslie.
| Team | Score | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | PTS | REB | AST |
| CON | 90 | 26 | 23 | 16 | 25 | Thomas- 28 | Bonner- 10 | Thomas- 12 |
| MIN | 75 | 19 | 15 | 15 | 26 | Collier- 31 | McBride- 7 | Mitchell- 5 |
NEXT GAME: The Connecticut Sun head to Brooklyn to take on the New York Liberty in Game 1 of the WNBA Semifinals on Sunday, September 24 at 1:00 PM ET.