Sun Throttle Lynx, Improve to League-Best 7-1

By Bob Phillips

Courtney Williams led the way with a game-high 22 points as the Sun
overcame the defending WNBA champion Minnesota Lynx, 89-75.

UNCASVILLE—Heading into Saturday afternoon’s game, Connecticut Sun fans  were no doubt wondering which Minnesota Lynx team would show up: last year’s WNBA champs who finished the regular season with a 27-6 record, then bouncing the Washington Mystics in three straight games in the WNBA semifinal round before outlasting the then-defending champion Los Angeles Sparks in a hard-fought Final series, won by the Lynx, 3-2, or this year’s version that stumbled early, suffering through a four-game losing streak (three of them on the road), and entering the game with a 3-5 record.

Records aside, Minnesota was led by the immensely popular Maya Moore, the leading scorer and second leading rebounder in UConn history, Lindsay Whalen, who cut her professional teeth with the Sun before heading back to her home state, and Seimone Augustus (11.9 points per game). Oh, I almost forgot to mention Sylvia Fowles, the Lynx’s 6-0, 220-lb. force in the paint average a double-double on the season (16.8 points, 11.9 rebounds).

No, forget the records. This one was going to be a war.

And you know what? It was for much of the game. But led by Courtney Williams’ game-high 22 points and Jasmine Thomas’ 18, the Sun stopped the defending champs, 89-75, before 6,771 fans at the Mohegan Sun Arena—an excellent crowd given what a glorious spring weekend afternoon the region enjoyed. Chiney Ogwumike added a double-double (11 points, 11 boards) and Shekinna Stricklen popped in 11 for the Sun, who improved to 7-1, the best record in the league, and tying their best start in history. They are also 4-0 on their home court.

UConn legend Maya Moore came home and put up 17 points for the Lynx,
but it wasn't enough as Connecticut topped Minnesota on Saturday.

(photo by Bob Phillips)

Fowles led Minnesota with—what else?—a Double-D (20 points, 14) boards, while Moore added 17 and Cecilia Zandalasini 11 for the Lynx, who fell to 3-6.

The score was knotted at 20-20 at the first turn, but the Sun cranked it up in the second period and took a 44-38 lead into the locker room at intermission. Connecticut, which shot a respectable 43.8 percent from the floor in the first half (14-for-32), held Minnesota to 35.1 percent (13-for-37, including 2-for-12 from beyond the arc).

The Lynx looked to gain control when they opened the second half with a 14-4 run, and grabbed a short-lived 52-48 lead. But the Sun responded with a 13-0 run and never looked back after that.

“This league is about runs, and that’s a championship team,” said Sun head coach and general manager Curt Miller of the Lynx third quarter run. “You know they were going to make a run at us. I thought we were a little sluggish out of the locker room.”

“[Minnesota] is always going to make runs and how you react to them—how you respond—is extremely important,” said Jasmine Thomas. “It’s a sign of our maturity

Moore, the former UConn superstar, was not happy with her team’s inability to reach down and grind out a victory on the road.

“It’s always a combination of one team’s will and the other team increasing focus and will. It’s a game of wills,” she said. “We have to control what we can control and I have to continue to take care of the ball and not set ourselves up. We missed a lot of shots we normally make, combined with not willing ourselves to be better in the fourth. It’s disappointing, but we’re going to keep pushing to fix the things that we can.”

Next the Sun will entertain Mike Thibault, Elena Delle Donne and the Washington Mystics on Wednesday. Tip-off is at 7 p.m., and the game will be televised nationally on ESPN2.

—with staff reports