Connecticut’s Natisha Hiedeman scored 16 points off the bench as the Sun won their 14th straight game Sunday.
For a day or so, the Connecticut Sun will bask in the accomplishments they have achieved in the 2021 season. Or maybe it won’t be long as all – when one considers this team’s tendency to prepare.
This team is built to win a WNBA championship and they are in the best position they can be in at the close of the regular season having won a team-record 14 straight games, finishing the regular season with the best record in the league and earning the No. 1 seed in the upcoming WNBA playoffs.
“We’re going to live in this moment and enjoy this incredible ride but when we get back to work, we’re 0-0,” Sun head coach and general manager Curt Miller said Sunday after Connecticut beat the Atlanta Dream, 84-64 at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville. “It’s not about three games. It’s not about six games. It’s about one game (game one of the WNBA semifinals on Sept. 28) and we’re going to prepare like crazy.”
Jonquel Jones scored 15 points and pulled down 10 rebounds while Natisha Hiedeman scored 16 points off the bench for Connecticut (26-6), which tied the franchise record for most wins in a single season, which was set in 2005 and 2006 – years that Mike Thibault took the Sun to the WNBA finals. Brionna Jones scored 14 points and pulled down 11 rebounds for the Sun.
It’s the best winning percentage (.812) in team history and the best mark at home (15-1) as well. The 14-game winning streak is the longest by one team going into the WNBA playoffs and it is the fourth longest winning streak in league history. The longest win streak is 18 by the Los Angeles Sparks, twice in 2001 and 2002-03.
The WNBA playoffs begin Thursday night with a pair of single-elimination contests with the two winners advancing to the second round – another single-elimination round. No. 8 New York will be at No. 5 Phoenix and No. 7 Dallas will visit No. 6 Chicago.
Connecticut will host game 1 and 2 of the WNBA semifinals on Tuesday, Sept. 28 and Thursday, Sept. 30 at the Mohegan Sun Arena.
“I am tremendously proud,” Miller said. “I am just truly humbled to watch the efforts of these players every day and the consistency they bring to the floor on game night. Their willingness to prepare is just outstanding. I couldn’t be more proud as a coach.”
Connecticut’s Dewanna Bonner played just three minutes after straining her back early in the game. But Miller said she felt fine at the end of the contest.
Alyssa Thomas played 18 minutes and scored five points, pulled down seven rebounds and had three assists. She was 1-of-7 from the floor. “The more she is out there and the more she plays, the more comfortable she will get and the most aggressive she will get,” Miller said.
Connecticut’s Alyssa Thomas (25), center, played in her second game of the season Sunday after recovering from an Achilles tendon injury.
Miller said it was helpful to have Thomas, the two-time WNBA All-Star, play in these final two regular season games. She tore her Achilles tendon in January and has not played since. She made her 2021 season debut on Wednesday night in the win over New York.
“Practice is great but it is a different beast on game night,” he said. “It’s a different temp, different pressure. I thought it was important that if she was going to play that she try and play in these two games instead of rolling her out and trying to experiment in the playoffs when the pressure is a great deal higher.”
The Sun drained four three-point shots in the first quarter to race out to a 27-13 lead. Atlanta cut the lead to seven but the Sun led by nine at the half, 46-37. Jasmine Thomas scored all seven of her points in the third quarter as the Sun stretched their lead to 14.
All 11 players on the roster scored for the Sun in the game and there was a nice moment on the floor for each Sun player whether it was a drive to the basket, pulling down a rebound, getting a steal or draining a three-point shot.
“Everyone can step up in the moment,” Jasmine Thomas said. “Everyone steps in their role and feels confident in it. We sacrifice for each other to play for each other.”
The Sun held Atlanta to a season-low 64 points. Monique Billings and Courtney Williams led the way for the Dream. Billings had 14 points and six rebounds on the day while Williams, the former fan favorite for the Sun, added 18 points and six rebounds.
NOTES: The Sun went 15-2 at home in 2011 and 2019. … Previously, the longest winning streak by a WNBA team going into the playoffs was 10 set by the New York Liberty in 2017. … The Sparks have the longest win streak in league history (18 games) followed by Phoenix (16) and the Houston Comets (15). … Jonquel Jones, the Sun’s MVP candidate, finished the season averaging 19.4 points and 11.2 rebounds a game. … The Sun were 26-8 following the regular season in 2004 and 2005.
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