Sun open season with win over Mystics
Alyssa Thomas scored 23 points, grabbed eight rebounds and recorded four assists to lead the Connecticut Sun to a season-opening 84-69 win over the Washington Mystics on Saturday at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.
The Sun were playing their first game since trading Chiney Ogwumike to Los Angeles in late April, but Thomas along with Jonquel Jones, who scored 10 points and pulled down 14 rebounds, filled the void.
The Mystics also were without a key player. All-Star and former Most Valuable Player Elena Delle Donne was ruled out earlier in the week with a sore left knee, the same knee she injured during Washington's run to the WNBA Finals in August.
Washington also lost Kristi Toliver, who banged a knee colliding with a cameraman early in the game. Toliver went on to play 20 minutes and score 11 points but sat on the bench with ice on her knee in the fourth quarter.
Emma Meesseman, who returned to the Mystics after playing in Belgium last year, scored 14 points to lead Washington.
In what was a rollercoaster first half, Connecticut went on an 11-0 run to take a 28-18 lead on back-to-back 3-pointers by Morgan Tuck.
But the Mystics stormed back and took a 35-30 lead on a Toliver 3-pointer during a 17-2 run.
Alyssa Thomas stopped the bleeding with a jumper and Rachel Banham's 3-pointer tied the game at 37-all. Banham's jumper with 2:33 left in the half put the Sun up for good.
The Sun took a 44-41 lead entering the third period and quickly took control. Jasmine Thomas followed Alyssa Thomas' 12-foot jumper with a pair of free throws and Connecticut had a seven-point lead at 52-45.
Shatori Walker-Kimbrough made two free throws to get the Mystics within five, but that's as close as Washington would get the rest of the way.
Jasmine Thomas' jumper at the 1:17 mark of the period gave the Sun their largest lead of the game at 67-49.
--Field Level Media
