Jonquel Jones scored 19 points to lead six players in double figures Friday night as the Connecticut Sun held off the Indiana Fever 94-85 in Uncasville, Conn.
DeWanna Bonner added 18, including a corner 3-pointer with 34.1 seconds left in the game that gave Connecticut (3-1) a 90-80 lead. Alyssa Thomas tallied 17 points, while Brionna Jones and DiJonai Carrington each came off the bench to net 11. Another reserve, Natisha Hiedeman, chipped in 10 points.
Kelsey Mitchell shot Indiana (2-5) into contention in the fourth quarter, scoring 19 of her game-high 23 points. Victoria Vivians added 15 points and Danielle Robinson hit for 10. But the Fever couldn’t pull off the upset despite canning 54 percent of their field goal attempts.
Indiana rookie NaLyssa Smith (ankle) missed her second straight game, which led to the Sun controlling the lane. Connecticut earned a 31-25 rebounding advantage, allowing just three offensive boards.
The Sun hit only 43.7 percent from the field, but were splendid from the 3-point arc, sinking 11 of 19 shots. They also connected on 21 of 29 free throws, while the Fever hit 11 of 13.
After coach Marianne Stanley called them out for a lackluster effort in a 101-79 home loss on Tuesday night against Atlanta, Indiana responded with a much better performance on both ends of the court against one of the WNBA’s best teams.
The Fever led most of the first quarter and took a 19-16 advantage to the second period when rookie Lexie Hull canned a 3-pointer in the final minute. But Connecticut fought back, using a 3-pointer by Jasmine Thomas as time expired to grab a 37-35 edge at halftime.
The Sun exploited their advantages in experience and size over the last 4 1/2 minutes of the third quarter. Following a Destanni Henderson layup that brought Indiana within 48-47, Connecticut went on a 15-4 run. Brionna Jones’ layup with 3.4 seconds remaining made it 63-51 going to the fourth period.
–Field Level Media
