Sun beat Washington again for third straight win

WASHINGTON, D.C., May 23, 2023 – The Connecticut Sun improved to 3-0 on the young season by beating the Washington Mystics for the second time in three days with an 88-81 victory in WNBA action on Tuesday night.

Connecticut’s Alyssa Thomas had her fifth straight double-double dating back to the 2022 season with a team-high 22 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and two steals. Dewanna Bonner had 15 points while Tiffany Hayes added 13 points and a career-high eight assists.

Elena Delle Donne led the Mystics (1-2) with game-high and season-high 27 points.

Thomas had eight points in the first quarter as the Sun used a 12-3 run to close out the quarter with a four-point lead. Washington had a point lead at the half but Bonner had seven of her 15 points in the third quarter as the Sun regained the lead.

“They continue to make gritty tough winning plays when we need getting a big defensive stop or a big rebound,” Sun head coach Stephanie White said. “They find ways to make plays to will our team to win ballgames.”

The Mystics used a 5-0 run to cut the lead to two, 81-79, when Delle Donne puta rebound back up and in with 1:07 remaining. But Bonner used a cutting layup to the basket with 52 seconds left to push the elad back to four points.

The Mystics coughed up the ball on their next possession as the Sun hit six of seven foul shots in the final minute to secure the win.

Connecticut shot a season-high 47.5 percent from the field while holding the Mystics to 41.5 percent shooting. The Sun had a big advantage in the paint, outscoring Washington, 40-26.

Connecticut returns to action when they face New York on Saturday afternoon in Brooklyn at 1 p.m.

Connecticut 88, Washington 81
At Washington
Connecticut (88) Bonner 4-6-15, Thomas 6-10-22, Jones 5-1-12, Hayes 4-2-13, Hiedeman 5-1-13, Cox 0-0-0, Nelson-Ododa 3-2-8, Allen 1-0-2, Harris 1-0-3, Brown 0-0-0. Totals 29-22-88
Washington (81) Delle Donne 11-3-27, Austin 5-4-14, Cloud 3-2-9, Sykes 4-6-17, Atkins 2-2-7, Zahui B  0-0-0, Hawkins 2-1-6, Toliver 0-1-1, Walker-Kimball 0-0-0, Meng 0-0-0. Totals 27-19-81
Connecticut (3-0)            21  22  20  25  — 88
Washington (1-2)            17  25  17  22  — 81
Three-point goals: Connecticut (8-22) Bonner, Jones, Hayes 3, Hiedeman 2, Harris; Washington (8-28) Delle Donne 2, Cloud, Sykes 3, Atkins, Hawkins