Sun down Fever, and close in on playoff spot
DeWanna Bonner scored 15 of her 26 points in the third quarter as the Connecticut Sun ran away from the Indiana Fever in a 96-77 romp Saturday afternoon at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla.
The Sun (9-10), which compiled a season-high point total, won for the third time in its last four games and all but wrapped up a playoff spot with three regular-season games remaining.
Alyssa Thomas, who led the early offense for the Sun, and Brionna Jones ended up with 20 points apiece.
Kelsey Mitchell paced Indiana with 16 points, while reserves Teaira McCowan and Tiffany Mitchell provided boosts with 15 and 12 points, respectively.
The Fever's starters totaled only 45 points. Indiana's offense was hindered by 20 turnovers, and their 9-for-22 shooting from 3-point range wasn't enough to make up the difference
Connecticut swept the season series from Indiana (5-14), which lost its seventh game in a row overall.
The Sun shot 51.4 percent from the field, led by Jones' 9-for-12 effort and Thomas' 8-for-13 mark. Jasmine Thomas supplied a team-high seven assists, while Alyssa Thomas was credited with five steals.
Bonner scored eight points in slightly more than three minutes to begin the second half. Her basket and three free throws later in the third quarter came as part of an 11-0 run that bumped the Sun's lead to 70-50.
The Sun won despite 3-for-9 shooting on 3-pointers, with two of the baskets in the final 3:04. A 21-for-22 mark on free throws made up for that, and Connecticut was also careful with the ball with just six turnovers. Bonner was 9-for-9 on free throws.
Alyssa Thomas racked up 14 first-half points as the Sun held a 47-37 lead at the half.
The Fever had almost half of its first-half scoring coming from reserves, who combined for 19 points before the break. By game's end, the Fever had missed 34 shots from the floor, but had only eight offensive rebounds.
--Field Level Media
