Sug Sutton’s tiebreaking runner in the lane with 22.6 seconds left propelled the Portland Fire to an 83-82 home win over the Connecticut Sun on Monday.
Connecticut missed two shots at the other end, and Bridget Carleton increased Portland’s lead to 83-79 by making two foul shots with 9.7 seconds to go.
The Sun got a 3-pointer from Charlisse Leger-Walker with 2.8 seconds remaining, then forced a turnover with 1.9 seconds left. A 3-point attempt by Aneesah Morrow just inside half-court was well short as time expired.
Portland (2-2) rallied throughout the game.
The Fire fell behind by seven points late in the third quarter before a 9-0 run lifted them into the lead when Sarah Ashlee Barker sank a 3-pointer.
In the final minutes of the fourth quarter, Portland benefitted from a pair of critical three-point plays from Barker that set up Sutton’s crucial bucket.
Barker finished with a career-high 18 points on 7-for-13 shooting off the bench, with eight of her points coming in the final frame. Carleton also had 18 points, shooting 5-for-12 and grabbing five rebounds.
Emily Engstler added 15 points for the Fire, and Sutton tallied 12. Nyadiew Puoch added 10 points.
Connecticut (0-5) remains the final winless team in the WNBA. In a one-point defeat, 18 Sun turnovers and 11-for-20 free-throw shooting both were particularly significant in the outcome.
The Sun were paced by 16 points from veteran Brittney Griner, who is now just a single point shy of becoming the 18th WNBA player to reach 6,000 career points. Griner shot 6-for-12 and grabbed five boards while dishing four assists.
Hailey Van Lith added 12 points, including a pair of baskets in the final minute, the second of which pulled the Sun into a tie. Van Lith shot 5-for-9 overall and had three assists. Morrow tallied 12 points and 12 rebounds, while Aaliyah Edwards also notched 12 points and Leger-Walker chipped in 10 points.
–Field Level Media
