Sun Stop Mystics, Series Knotted at 1-1

GAME ON: Led by a monster game from Jonquel Jones (32 points, 18
boards), the Connecticut Sun stopped the Washington Mystics on the
road, 99-87 in Game 2 of the WNBA Finals. The series now moves to
Connecticut with the series tied at 1-1.

By Bob Phillips

WASHINGTON, DC—Had they lost, the Connecticut Sun locker room might have resembled a Night of the Living Dead. Very few teams in professional sports history have been able to overcome an 0-2 start to ultimately win the world championship. The Mets did it against the Red Sox in the 1986 World Series. The Yankees’ came back from an 0-2 disadvantage to overcome the Dodgers in 1956 and 1978. The Dodgers did the same to the Yankees in 1955 and 1981.

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Actually, it’s not all that uncommon in baseball. Perhaps the most memorable comeback was in 1996 when the Yankees went down 0-2 to the Atlanta Braves, who were expected to be commencing on a diary. The Yankees proceeded to win the next four games to walk away with an amazing World Series victory.

But those were all seven-game series. In the WNBA, the Finals, under the current format, are a best-of-five-game proposition. The chances of a team coming back to win the title after going down 0-2 are roughly those of a blizzard hitting Miami. In July.

And so it was with a sense of urgency that the Sun took to the court last night, and urgently was the way they played. It’s true that Connecticut caught a huge break when Elena Delle Donne, the WNBA’s 2019 MVP, was forced to leave Game 2 with back spasms. Given that kind of opportunity, the Sun, led by a career night from center Jonquel Jones (32 points, 18 rebounds), defeated the Washington Mystics, 99-87, before 4,200 fans at Entertainment and Sports Arena last night. Courtney Williams added 22 points and six assists, and Alyssa Thomas chipped in with 21 points, 12 boards and six assists.

Emma Meesseman led Mystics with 23 points. While Meesseman wasn’t quite lights out, she was solid from the floor, knocking down 10 of the 17 shots she took. However, the 6-4 Belgian forward was only was only 1-for-5 from beyond the three-point arc. Indeed, the entire team was a sub-par 7-for-22 (31.8 percent) from downtown. Tianna Hawkins dropped in 16 (on 6-for-8 shooting), Kristi Oliver put up 13, and Aerial Powers scored 11 for the Mystics, the No. 1 seed in the tournament.

Back to the MVP—Delle Donne, who averaged 19.5 points and 8.2 rebounds on the season, left the game in the first quarter, and did not return. An MRI today revealed a small disc herniation. She is currently undergoing treatment, and an update on her status will be released on Saturday.

“She's just had, kind of ongoing, late-in-the-season tightness,” said Mystics coach Mike Thibault after the game. “We've been able to treat it and it's responded pretty well. But it's the one nightmare I've had the last month, is seeing her lying on her back.”

So the Sun were able to correct the listing ship after losing Game 1 xx-xx, and return home for two games with the series knotted 1-1. Which, of course, was the plan all along. So long as they win both, all will be right in Sunland.

“This was our goal, to steal a win on their floor,” said Sun guard Jasmine Thomas. “And now we get to go home and play two in a row.'”

After Delle Donne went down, the Sun asserted control, building a 14-point second-quarter lead and taking a 10-point advantage, 56-46, at halftime. The Mystics were not done, however. Not by a long shot.

In fact, Washington came all the way back to knot the game briefly in the third period, which has been the Sun’s strength all season. Indeed, late in the period, with the Sun back in charge by nine, the Mystics went on a 7-0 run late in the third to cut Connecticut’s lead to just two, 71-69. A runner by Toliver knotted the score with 8:14 left in regulation.

But then the Sun responded with their own 6-0 lead—a lead they would not relinquish. A put-back by J.J. and two inside buckets by Williams, aided by two offensive boards by Jones, staked Connecticut an 82-76 advantage.

Make no mistake, especially with the 6-5 Delle Donne out of the game, the Sun won this game off the glass. The Sun outrebounded Washington 41-27 overall, including a 17-6 off the offensive glass. Jones did not have a single offensive rebound in the Game 1, won by the Mystics, 95-86. She would not be denied in this one, however, grabbing 18 boards, including nine off the offensive glass—a WNBA Finals record.

“She's such a big part of what they do,” said J.J. of the Mystics’ superstar. “You don't want to wish injury on anyone, but we knew it was a chance to steal one here.”

Even so, after Connecticut led by as many as 14 points in the second quarter, the Mystics clawed their way back minus their superstar, from a 10-point halftime deficit to tie it up, albeit briefly.

Aerial Powers converted a three-point play before adding a slashing layup on Toliver's feed to cut it to 71-69 late in the third to complete a 7-0 run. Toliver's runner evened it at 76-all with 8:14 left in the game.

The Sun responded with a 6-0 spurt to take the lead for good. Jones hit a put-back before Williams added a pair of inside buckets, the latter after two offensive boards from Jones, to make it 82-76.

Alyssa Thomas has now played all 40 minutes of the series. She now averages 36 minutes in postseason, which leads all players who have played in multiple playoff games.

“She is so important to us,” explained Sun head coach and general manager Curt Miller. “She anchors our defense... I don't think there's a better defender in the league.”

But make no mistake: Even though they are returning to the cozy comfort of the Mohegan Sun Arena, the Sun have their work cut out for them against the Mystics. Take, for example, the fact that the Mystics’ bench has outscored the Sun’s by a humongous 52-9 margin.

So now it’s on to Game 3. Tip-off at the Mohegan Sun Arena is slated for 3:30 p.m. on Sunday. Tickets are available at the Mohegan Sun box office or by clicking HERE. For those unable to attend, the game will be televised nationally on ABC.

—with staff reports