All five Sun starters finish in double-figures in balanced attack.
Uncasville, CT (June 18, 2024)- Tonight, the Connecticut Sun (13-1) defeated the Los Angeles Sparks (4-11), 79-70. The Sun have won ten straight against the Sparks, dating back to the 2020 season.
Tonight marks the first time in franchise history the Connecticut Sun have started the season with a 13-1 record. Their previous best start through 14 games was 12-2, achieved during the 2005 season.
DeWanna Bonner led the Sun in a balanced scoring effort, notching 16 points, seven rebounds, one assist, two steals and two blocks. Ty Harris finished with 14 points, two assists and one steal, while Alyssa Thomas filled the stat sheet with 11 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and three steals.
DiJonai Carrington tallied 12 points, five rebounds, two assists, two steals and one block. Brionna Jones rounded out the double-digit scoring efforts with 13 points, three rebounds, three assists and one steal, as all five starters scored 10+ points on the night.
The Sun jumped out to a 13-7 lead heading into the first media timeout of the night. Brionna Jones notched seven points in the opening six minutes. Los Angeles closed the quarter on a 7-5 run to close the gap to four, 18-14, heading into the second. The Sun opened the second on a 12-6 run, extending their lead to 10, 30-20, and forcing the Sparks into a timeout with 5:49 remaining in the first half. Los Angeles was able to get as close as seven late in the quarter, 33-26, but Connecticut finished the half on a 6-2 spurt to take a 39-28 lead into the locker room.
The Sparks opened the second half on an 8-4 run to cut the lead back to seven, 43-36, and force the Sun into a timeout with 7:30 to play in the third. Los Angeles closed the gap as close as five, but a 10-0 run to end the quarter gave the Sun a 63-48 lead heading into the fourth. Alyssa Thomas had eight points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals in the third to lead Connecticut. The Sun enjoyed a lead as large as 19 in the fourth, but the Sparks were able to win the final quarter, 22-16, to cut the Sun’s advantage to nine to finish the game, 79-70.
Los Angeles was paced by Aari McDonald who finished with 14 points, four rebounds and a team and career-high tying seven assists in her first start of the season. The Sparks notched 32 bench points in the game, tying the most points off the bench the Sun have given up this season (32 vs. Indiana- 6/10).
The next meeting between the two teams will be on August 20 as the Sun host the Sparks at the TD Garden for the first-ever WNBA regular season contest played in Boston, MA.
Notes:
- The Sun forced the Sparks into 24 turnovers in the game and notched 30 points off those mistakes- a new season-high.
- Alyssa Thomas moved into 22nd all-time in WNBA history, passing Kate Smith. She now has 1,259 assists in her career.
- DiJonai Carrington tied her career-high with three steals.
- With four field goals in the win, Alyssa Thomas eclipsed 1,400 field goals made in her career. She is one of four players in league history to reach at least 1,400 field goals made, 1,200 assists and 2,000 rebounds (Tamika Catchings, Candace Parker and Diana Taurasi).
- The Sun held the Sparks’ leading scorer Dearica Hamby to just eight points on the night, 11 points under her season average entering the game (19.0).
- The Sparks committed a season-high 15 turnovers in the first half of action, tying their season-high for turnovers in a single half. The Sun scored 20 points off those 15 first half turnovers.
- The Sun outscored the Sparks in the paint, scoring a season-high 50 points against their 32.
| Team | Score | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | PTS | REB | AST |
| CON | 79 | 18 | 21 | 24 | 16 | Bonner- 16 | Bonner/Thomas- 7 | Thomas- 7 |
| LAS | 70 | 14 | 14 | 20 | 22 | McDonald- 14 | Jackson- 7 | McDonald- 7 |
NEXT GAME: The Connecticut Sun head west to take on the Las Vegas Aces on Friday, June 21 at 10:00 PM ET/7:00 PM PT at Michelob Ultra Arena.