Sun earns No. 1 seed, will appear in fifth straight postseason and third straight semifinals
On Sunday, Sept. 19 the Connecticut Sun (26-6) concluded the 2021 regular season in record breaking fashion. The Sun defeated the Atlanta Dream 84-64 and topped it off by extending their win streak to 14-straight. Not only did the team set the franchise record for consecutive wins, they set the league record for longest win streak to end a season. The Sun’s previous record was 12-straight set during the 2006 season and the league’s previous best was 10 set by the 2017 New York Liberty.
The accolades for Connecticut don’t stop there. The Sun set a new franchise record for fewest losses in a season which translated over to the best winning percentage (.8125) in history as well. Furthermore, the team’s 26 wins tied the organization’s record for most wins in a season (set in ’05 & ’06). The Sun’s historic record is largely attributed to the home court advantage in Mohegan Sun Arena. Connecticut posted a franchise-best, and league best, 15-1 record at home. In 2019 the Sun finished 15-2 at home, tying Los Angeles for the best home record in the league that year.
Straight to the Semis
On Aug. 24, the Sun defeated the Las Vegas Aces and secured a spot in the playoffs for the fifth straight season. Two weeks later a win over Dallas (9/7) earned Connecticut a single bye and one game after that the Sun defeated the Sparks (9/9) for a double bye, advancing to the semifinals for the third year in a row. In the last game of the three-game road trip, Connecticut pulled out a 76-67 victory over the Phoenix Mercury (9/11) and solidified the No. 1 seed for the 2021 WNBA Playoffs.
Connecticut will host the first two games of the best-of-five series on Tuesday, Sept. 28 and Thursday, Sept. 30 on ESPN2 at 8pm ET, respectively. The Sun’s opponent will be determined after the first two rounds. Tickets for the playoffs are now on sale and can be purchased HERE.
Head Coach Curt Miller has the most playoff wins since 2017 (9) and will look to add to that as his team advances to their fifth straight postseason. During the Sun’s 19-year history the team has advanced to the postseason in 14 seasons. Connecticut has also advanced to the WNBA Finals three times, including the most recent in 2019 (’04, ’05, ’19).
Adding up the Awards
During the 2021 regular season, Connecticut has had a player named Player of the Week, seven times, including three weeks in a row in August. DeWanna Bonner earned one, Brionna Jones collected two and Jonquel Jones added four of her own. J. Jones was also named Player of the Month for the months of May and August. Head Coach Curt Miller was named Coach of the Month for August as he coached the team to an undefeated August, finishing 7-0. Most recently, J. Jones was named WNBA Peak Performer for rebounding. She concluded the season leading the league in rebounds at 11.2 per game.
B. Jones, Bonner and J. Jones strong performances in the first half of the season also helped them earn a trip to the 2021 WNBA All-Star game. The three Sun forwards helped lead the WNBA All-Star team to a 93-85 victory over the U.S. Olympic team.
The No. 1 Sun get ready for games one and two of the WNBA Semifinals scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 28 and Thursday, Sept. 30. Both contests will be played at Mohegan Sun Arena and broadcast on ESPN2. Tip is set for 8pm ET. For more information or to purchase tickets head to conneticutsun.com or https://bit.ly/PlayoffTickets21.
2021 Playoff Dates
| Round/Game | Date | Location |
| Semifinals Game 1 | Tuesday, Sept. 28 at 8pm | Mohegan Sun Arena |
| Semifinals Game 2 | Thursday, Sept. 30 at 8pm | Mohegan Sun Arena
|
| Semifinals Game 3 | Sunday, Oct. 3
(Time TBD) |
TBD
|
| Semifinals Game 4
(if necessary) |
Wednesday, Oct. 6
(Time TBD) |
TBD
|
| Semifinals Game 5
(if necessary) |
Friday, Oct. 8
(Time TBD) |
Mohegan Sun Arena
|
| Finals Game 1 | Sunday, Oct. 10 at 3pm | TBD
|
| Finals Game 2 | Wednesday, Oct. 13 at 9pm | TBD
|
| Finals Game 3 | Friday, Oct. 15 at 9pm | TBD
|
| Finals Game 4
(if necessary) |
Sunday, Oct. 17 at 3pm | TBD
|
| Finals Game 5
(if necessary) |
Tuesday, Oct. 19 at 9pm | TBD
|
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