Sun Bounce Back With Resounding 28-Point Win Over Phoenix

Diana Taurasi did not bring her "A" game to the Mohegan Sun Arena
on Sunday. The former Husky legend scored just seven points as her
Phoenix Mercury were trounced by the Connecticut Sun, 94-66.

(Photo by Bob Phillips)

By Bob Phillips

UNCASVILLE–Diana Taurasi was hoping her second visit to Connecticut—the state in which she first became a household name as a four-year star with the UConn Huskies women’s basketball team—would have a bit more satisfying ending than her first. Although Taurasi led all scorers in that game with a 33-point outburst, her team ended on the short end of the stick by the narrowest of margins, 93-92, two weeks ago.

Fourteen days later, it was no contest.

Led by five players in double digits, the Connecticut Sun ran roughshod over the Phoenix Mercury, 94-66, before 8,353 fans at the Mohegan Sun Arena on Sunday afternoon. Jonquel Jones led the Sun with 20 points, and Alyssa Thomas had her fourth double-double of the season (17 points, 12 rebounds). It was her 10th straight game scoring in double figures, and her 22nd of the season. Courtney Williams chipped in with 16 points, Jasmine Thomas with 14, and Shekinna Stricklen had 12 points—all from beyond the three-point arc).

Forward Lynetta Kizer sat out the game with a bad back.

Taurasi, meanwhile, did not bring her “A” game to the Mohegan Sun on Sunday. Nor her “B” game. Actually, it’s hard to assign a letter to the game Dee brought yesterday because it basically wasn’t there. She ended the game with just seven points, shooting just 3-for-11 from the field (27.3 percent), including just 1-for-4 from beyond the arc.

Brittney Griner, the leading per-game scorer in the league working her way back into game shape from an injury that had kept her sidelined for a month, led the Mercury with 18 points and eight boards, and Monique Currie added 12 for Phoenix, which fell to 15-14. While the Mercury are still positioned at No. 7 in the playoff picture, but the Mercury are going the wrong way down the highway to the postseason, having dropped six of their last 10 games.

Phoenix jumped out to an early 10-2 advantage, and led by two, 27-25, at the first turn. But the Sun settled down and took a 46-45 lead into the locker room at intermission. In the third period, a 19-4 run gave Connecticut a commanding 65-49 lead. Alyssa Thomas fueled that stretch with nine points, while Jasmine Thomas had two treys and two steals.

The Sun put the game away midway through the fourth quarter. Leading by 13, Connecticut went on a 17-0 run, giving Connecticut a 30-point lead, 94-64, with only 1:54 remaining in the contest.

Taurasi did not mince words in giving her postgame assessment of her team’s performance.

“They just kicked our ass,” she said. “I mean, that’s just the bottom line. They kicked our ass in the second half in every aspect of the game. Give credit to them; they played well.”

The game represented a solid rebound for the Sun after losing to the New York Liberty, 82-70, at home on Friday. But the score was deceptive. The Sun did virtually nothing right, and were never really in the contest.

“Obviously, we were disappointed with the result of the New York game,” Connecticut head coach and general manager Curt Miller said. “But I thought it was good for us to see how in this league, the most aggressive and physical team—the aggressor at both ends of the floor—finds a way to the finish line.”

So, Miller was nothing short of delighted at his team’s bounce-back effort against Phoenix—particularly given the tough, tough game the Mercury had played two weeks previous. Without the benefit of Griner, mind you.

“We really battled at the point of attack tonight,” he continued. “We got enough stops that turned into transition. Our defense turned into offense tonight and so we got out running and got the game back to where we’re comfortable and really playing up-tempo. We just really wanted to attack them.”

With the win, the Sun improved to 19-10, two games ahead of both New York and Washington in the Eastern Conference race. Most importantly, the win guaranteed that the Sun will play at least one game at the Mohegan Sun Arena in the postseason.

“That’s huge,” said Miller. ”With this new format, just because you get in the playoffs doesn’t mean you automatically get to play in front of your home crowd. You can be one-and-done in that seven-eight spot on the road. So tonight, clinching no worse than a top six, we are guaranteed at least a home playoff game. It’s going to be big.”

But enough of the playoff talk. There is still plenty of regular season action left for this team, with locking up the No. 3 overall spot its top priority. Toward that end, next up, the Sun will entertain Skylar Diggins-Smith, Glory Johnson and the 14-16 Dallas Wings on Wednesday night. Tip-off is at 7 p.m., and the game will be televised. For tickets, visit the Mohegan Sun box office or click HERE. For those unable to attend, the game will be streamed live on WNBA League Pass.

—With Staff Reports