Sun drop back-to-back contests for the second time this season
Uncasville, CT (September 6, 2024)- Tonight, the Connecticut Sun (24-10) fell to the Las Vegas Aces (22-12) for the second time this season, 72-67. Their final regular season meeting will come on September 15 in Las Vegas.
The Sun led for the majority of the contest, taking a lead large as 15 with under two minutes to go in the first half. After taking a 12-point lead into the locker room, the Sun were outscored by the Aces, 46-29, in the final twenty minutes of play.
Brionna Jones led Connecticut for the second time over the last three games with 17 points, six rebounds and one assist on the night. Marina Mabrey added 15 points, two rebounds, four assists, three steals and one block in 29 minutes off the bench.
DeWanna Bonner was one-rebound shy of a double-double, rounding out the Sun’s double-digit scorers with 11 points, nine rebounds, one assist and two steals in the game. With five field goals in the game, she also moved into eighth all-time in field goals made in WNBA history, passing Candace Parker.
The Sun shot 44.6% (25-56) from the field, while holding the Aces to 38.5% (25-65) from the floor on the night. Connecticut turned the ball over 19 times, one shy of their season-high, resulting in 16 points for Las Vegas. The Sun also struggled from beyond the arc, going just 3/16 (18.8%), while the Aces went 6/20 (30%).
Kelsey Plum led the Aces with 27 points, five rebounds, two assists and one steal on the night. A’ja Wilson added 20 points on the night, scoring 15 points in the second half of action.
Game Runs:
1Q: The Sun took a 14-13 lead over the Aces into the first media timeout of the contest, going 7/8 (87.5%) from the floor to start the game. Brionna Jones had six of Connecticut’s 14 points in the opening five minutes. Connecticut finished the quarter on an 8-4 spurt to take a 22-17 lead into the second. Marina Mabrey had six of the Sun’s final eight points of the quarter. The Sun shot 73.3% (11/15) in the opening quarter, their highest first quarter field goal percentage this season.
2Q: A 7-3 start to the second pushed the Sun’s lead up to nine, 29-20, with 6:25 remaining in the first half. Both teams struggled from the floor to begin the quarter, with the first field goal from either team coming from the Aces’ Kelsey Plum at the 6:56 mark in the second. The Sun went on to outscore the Aces, 16-9, in the second to take a 38-26 lead into the locker room. Connecticut held Las Vegas to just one field goal in the quarter (1/14), but the Sun struggled from the field as well, going just 2/12 (16.7%) in the second. The two teams combined for 22 free throw attempts in the quarter. Brionna Jones led the Sun in scoring through the first half, notching nine points, while DiJonai Carrington and Marina Mabrey each added eight points through twenty minutes of play. Kelsey Plum accounted for 16 of the Aces 26 first-half points.
3Q: The Aces began the second half on a 9-2 run to cut the Sun’s lead to five, 40-35, and forcing the Sun into a timeout with 6:53 to play in the third. Connecticut turned the ball over twice in the opening minutes of the quarter. The Aces closed the gap to one, 45-44, with 3:27 to play in the quarter, but the Sun rattled off five unanswered to push their lead back up to six, 50-44, with 2:19 left in the third. Las Vegas outscored Connecticut, 5-2, the rest of the way to close the gap to three, 52-49, heading into the fourth.
4Q: The Sun began the fourth on a 9-7 run to push their lead back up to five, 61-56, with 5:42 to play in the game. DeWanna Bonner had four of Connecticut’s nine on that stretch. Las Vegas responded on an 8-4 push to close the lead to one, 65-64, with 3:07 remaining in the quarter. The Aces went on to take the lead on a pair of free throws from A’ja Wilson with 2:09 to play, 66-65. Jones responded with a layup to regain the lead for Connecticut, 67-66, with 1:17 left in the fourth. Wilson put Las Vegas up for good with a jumper to make it 68-67 with 58.5 seconds left. The Sun were held scoreless for the rest of the contest, as Chelsea Gray nailed a dagger three-point field goal with 18.8 second remaining and Wilson sealing the win for Las Vegas with a free-throw with five seconds left in the contest, 72-67.
Notes:
- DiJonai Carrington finished with eight points, six rebounds, one assist, one steal and a career-high two blocks.
- DeWanna Bonner moved into fourth all-time in games played in WNBA history tonight, tying Tina Thompson (496).
- The Sun held the Aces to 26.5% (9/34) from the floor in the first half, the lowest shooting percentage they have allowed all season in the first half of play. Their 26 points in the first half also mark their fewest in a half since July 2017.
- Alyssa Thomas finished with seven points, 10 rebounds, eight assists and four steals.
- It was her 22nd outing with 7+ assists in a game this season, good for second in the WNBA.
| Team | Score | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | PTS | REB | AST |
| CON | 67 | 22 | 16 | 14 | 15 | Jones- 17 | Thomas- 10 | Thomas- 8 |
| LVA | 72 | 17 | 9 | 23 | 23 | Plum- 27 | Wilson- 8 | Gray- 6 |
NEXT GAME: The Connecticut Sun begin a four-game west coast road trip against the Los Angeles Sparks on Sunday, September 8 at 9:00 PM ET/6:00PM PT at Crypto.com arena.