Sun Clip Wings, Make Playoffs for Second Straight Year

Courtney Williams of the Sun applies the defensive clamps
to former South Carolina star Allisha Gray.

By Bob Phillips

ARLINGTON, TX—Oops, they did it again!

After missing out of the playoffs for four straight years, the Connecticut Sun finally made it back to the postseason for the first time since 2012—Mike Thibault’s last season on the Connecticut bench. Well, that dry spell is in the Sun’s rear-view mirror. To illustrate that point, Alyssa Thomas scored a season-high 22 points to lead the Sun past the Dallas Wings, 101-92, before 3,483 fans at College Park Center. In the process, Connecticut qualified for the postseason for the second straight year

It’s no coincidence that the Sun’s return to prominence coincides with the arrival of head coach and general manager’s Curt Miller, who went through one “adjustment” season, but now stands at 39-25 (and counting) over the last two campaigns.

Wednesday’s contest was yet another offensive clinic for Connecticut, which reached the 100-point plateau for the second straight game—and a franchise record sixth time this season. Indeed, the Sun, who banged home 46 field goals in their last outing vs. Las Vegas at the Mohegan Sun Arena on Sunday, added 40 more buckets against the Wings, and threw in 25 assists for good measure.

It was the fifth straight win for the Sun, who improved to 17-12, and the fourth win in a row over the Wings (14-15) dating back to last year. And while we’re talking offense, the Sun are averaging 97.6 points on 39.6 field goals and 23 assists per game during the current winning streak.

Ayssa Thomas was not alone in the Sun’s offensive barrage on Wednesday. Indeed, five Sun players scored in double digits: Jasmine Thomas had 17 points and tied a season-high with nine assists, matching the assist total she had in the first meeting with the Wings (7/22). Jonquel Jones had 17 points off the bench and Chiney Ogwumike popped in 13 points and grabbed five boards.

In addition, Courtney Williams had her third double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds. She has now matched her single-game career-high of 10 rebounds four times this season. Finally, in addition to her game-high 22 points, Alyssa Thomas added five rebounds, four assists and three steals to her bottom line.

Liz Cambage led the Wings with a 29-point, nine-rebound effort, followed by Skylar Diggins-Smith (18 points), Azura Stevens (15 points, nine rebounds) and Theresa Pleisance (13 points, six boards).

Connecticut, which held a 28-22 advantage at the first turn, took control of the contest in the second period in which they outscored the home team 20-10 to take a 48-32 lead into the locker room at intermission. Coming off a career-high 30-point performance against Las Vegas three nights earlier, Jasmine Thomas led the Sun with 10 points and five assists in the first half.

"We’ve got to move the ball to the basket—go hard to the basket and finish,” said Dallas head coach Fred Williams. “We’ve got to put down free throws too.”

Without question, Williams’s team was losing in the paint to Connecticut, which, in large part, limited the bigger, stronger Wings to just 10 second period points, and he said that had to change as well.

“That’s a huge key for this game," continued Williams. "We talked about it before the game. We’ve got the size… Let’s get the ball in there and pick-and-roll instead of popping out.”

How bad was Dallas outplayed in the second period? The Sun bench outscored the entire Wings team in the second stanza by a 14-10 margin.

And the Connecticut dominance continued in the third period. Indeed, the Sun led by as much as 22 on several occasions, and carried an 80-60 lead rounding the final pole. Connecticut led by a seemingly comfortable 15 points with just 2:29 remaining in regulation, but the home team turned up the heat to make things interesting by going on a 9-0 run to cut the Sun advantage to six, 96-90, with 42.7 ticks left on the clock. But the Sun slammed the door at that point and emerged victorious.

For Ogwumike, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2014 draft out ot Stanford, it will be her first trip to the postseason having sat out all of last season with a foot injury. To say she is jacked would be an understatement of massive proportions.

"I think it's just finding our confidence, finding our edge," said the 6-4 forward after the game on her team's current play. "We don't have one bona fide superstar, so we depend on each other," she modestly continued. "We have to keep playing unselfishly."

It was Connecticut’s fifth straight victory—tying the Sun with Washington for the longest current winning streak in the league. The Sun, who are in the No. 5 overall spot in the WNBA standings, one-half game behind No. 4 Los Angeles and 1.5 games behind Thibault’s Washington Mystics, have now won seven of their last 10 games.

The Sun now move on to the Windy City where they will play former UConn stars Stefanie Dolson, Gabby Williams, and the 10-19 Chicago Sky on Friday night. Tip-off is at 9 p.m. ET, and the game will be televised live on NBCSB and streamed on WNBA League Pass.

—with staff reports